


An Unexpected Turn of Events

by MiHnn



Category: Life with Derek
Genre: Angst and Humor, F/M, Family Drama, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-06-27
Updated: 2012-10-05
Packaged: 2017-11-08 16:41:14
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 67,515
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/445273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MiHnn/pseuds/MiHnn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What happens when Derek realizes that contrary to his belief, there were guys who found his keener step-sister attractive?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Casey couldn't help but feel slightly nostalgic these past few days. She was very aware that she would be leaving for the University of Toronto in less than two months, and as a result, see her family less and less. She would miss Lizzie and her constant animal loving, environmentally aware self, Edwin and his enthusiasm for making a quick buck, Marti and her bubbly, fun loving nature, George and his somewhat questionable and highly hilarious parenting skills, and most of all, her mother, who at this point she couldn't imagine living without. Yes, she was going to miss this family, this house, this life which she had unknowingly fallen in love with within the past few years. All that is, except for one person. Or as Casey refered to him, one thing. Derek!

Shaking her head in an attempt to rid herself of any negative thoughts that were bound to cloud her mind from that one name this Saturday morning, Casey continued her ministrations of preparing a 'healthy family breakfast to show love and appreciation', step number two in her twelve step list she formed a few days back to ensure that she leaves London with no regrets.

"Casey? What's all this?" Casey turned around after having placed the finishing touches on her gift for the family and faced her mother and George who had just entered the kitchen, still dressed in their robes. They probably would have not looked so wide awake if it weren't for the unexpected surprise that awaited them.

"Good Morning, Mom! George!" Casey cheerfully replied as she walked towards them. "I just thought that since I'll be leaving in a few weeks that these are the last few days that we have a chance to sit together and have a proper meal together. So, I prepared everyone's favourite meals. But a bit more healthier of course." She smiled brightly at them while gesturing them to take a seat. She couldn't help but enjoy the feeling of a sense of accomplishment when she noted their pleased faces.

Nora walked over and hugged Casey tightly, very aware that she would be loosing her little girl soon. "That is so sweet Casey. But you really didn't have to go through so much trouble."

"Of course I did mom. I wanted to show you guys that I appreciate you all, and what better way to show that than a breakfast feast?" Casey replied pulling away from the hug.

George put his arm around his wife and faced Casey. "Casey, I think what your mother is trying to say is that we love what you did. At least you show appreciation for this family, unlike some members," he finished bitterly thinking about his eldest son.

"Woah. Super mom's back?" The three in the kitchen turned towards Edwin who had just come downstairs to be shocked awake. Like many members of the male species, food was his first love.

Before they could reply Lizzie entered the room with a confused expression on her face. "Mom, did you quit your job again?"

Nora smiled at the younger teenagers, understanding why they thought the end result in the kitchen was her doing. "Actually, it was Casey." Nora looked proudly at her daughter.

"She wanted to do something to show how she appreciates all of us so she made our favourite meals," George continued.

"Sweet!" Edwin stated immediately jumping on a stool and grabbing as many chocolate chip pancakes as possible. "You should do this everyday," he continued with his mouth full. Casey shook her head not understanding why Edwin wanted to imitate Derek when it came to disgusting eating habits.

"And, you guys better eat quickly before it all cools down" Casey stated while taking out a few glasses from the cupboards. Indicating that the rest of the family should also follow Edwin's example. But perhaps with a bit more refinement."Where's Marti?"

"I'm here!" Marti bounded into the kitchen jumping onto a stool next to the other members, while placing her stuffed monkey on the counter. "Casey? Why did you make all of this? Did you make something that's blue? Oh, blueberry pancakes! Can I have some?"

While Nora was filling Marti's plate and the general Saturday morning conversations commenced with continuous praise for a blushing Casey on a job well done, they all looked up to see a face they didn't expect to see until the day had half gone. Derek shuffled into the kitchen with a face that simply stated that he was up against his will and did not like it. "Practice" he mumbled in response to the lack of activity the appearance of his form caused and the questioning glances. His lethargic movement stopped abruptly as he saw the kitchen counter. His face broke out into a wide grin. And as the rest of the family watched, his mood decisively changed from slow and painful to one that was full of energy as he practically lunged for the breakfast and started simultaneously placing the various treats in his mouth as well as on his plate. "Nora, you have totally outdone yourself this time," Derek stated taking extra care to ensure that his mouth was completely full of food while speaking, knowing well that it would irritate Princess Casey to see him talk like that.

"Actually, this was all Casey's doing," Nora spoke with amusement wondering how Derek would get out of the compliment that he had just paid his step-sister.

Derek, however, didn't miss a beat. "That makes sense." He looked at Casey. "I thought the pancakes were a bit too dry and the juice was too bitter."

Casey scoffed and crossed her arms over her chest, a protective gesture meant only to show her irritation and anger. "Yeah, sure. As if you care what food tastes like in the first place. You would eat anything as long as it was dipped in ketchup or chocolate". The rest of the family however, recognising the signs of the usual sparring, turned towards each other to have their own family conversation. Something that they have gotten used to doing since the McDonalds moved in.

Derek swallowed and gave her his signature smirk. "I think you got me mixed up with your boyfriend Space Case. See, I, unlike Maxine, do not eat just anything. I eat food that's delicious and delectable," he said with a flourish, imitating the wording used on a tv advertisement he saw last night. "By the way, I love today's look. What's the message? Help me I'm boring?"

Casey huffed as she gave Derek the glare which he was obviously aiming for by that last statement. "As if I need to take fashion advice from you. Mr. I'm-too-lazy-to-wear-clean-clothes. And you cant even compare yourself to Max. He's everything you're not. He's smart, sophisticated and doesn't talk with his mouth full" She finished with a disgusted tone.

"Sure. Like that's the trait all women look for. Face it Case, the ladies love the bad boys." Derek leaned back in his chair as if he had clearly won the argument.

"That is not true Venturi and you know it" Casey countered. "The 'ladies' love gentlemen". She ignored Derek's scoff as she continued. "I've spoken to some of your so called dates and do you know what they tell me? That you're sweet and kind and a good listener. Ha! As if! But the point is, you act like a gentlemen to get girls, but Max, he IS a gentlemen."

"Oh please." Derek rolled his eyes. "As if Maxy-boy is a gentlemen in the first place. He's a guy. And guys are _not_ gentlemen. He's just doing all this to get in your pants"

"DEREK" George and Nora cried in protests. They were painfully aware that although the rest of the family tuned out the bickering of their older children, it didn't mean that the other smaller kids weren't aware of what was still said.

"Why would someone want Casey's pants?" Marti looked questioningly at all around the counter. Nora, George and Casey were trying to think of a proper response that would stop all further questions when Derek suddenly decided to reply. "No Smarti, no one wants Casey's pants. It's what Max wants to do in those-"

"DEREK" George, Nora and Casey interrupted him causing Edwin and Lizzie to giggle. "What?" Derek looked at the parents with a look he has mastered which had the perfect blend of innocence and ignorance.

"God! You are _such_ a JERK!" Casey screamed at him grabbing the napkin in front of her and throwing it at him. She was disappointed that he easily caught it and continued to laugh at her. Damn those hockey reflexes. Knowing fully well that she needed to leave before any angry tears made it down her face, she stormed out of the kitchen and headed upstairs.

Derek continued laughing as he heard her stomp upstairs and slam her bedroom door. It was insanely easy to get her riled up. Especially if he attacked Max. Lizzie gave Derek a you're-pathetic look which he easily shrugged off. Edwin continued eating. George and Nora sighed looking at Derek. "What?" he repeated. "Can I help it if she can't take a joke?"

Lizzie narrowed her eyes at him. "Why do you have to be so mean? She made this breakfast for us and you cant even bother to say thank you. Or at least leave her alone and not get her mad."

George nodded in agreement. "Seriously, Derek, sometimes you take things too far. And don't make those type of comments anymore while in this house," he stated sternly.

Derek looked at his family in mock surprise. "Dad, I'm just being a good brother here and looking out for her." Derek ignored the scoffs and disbelieving looks. "Max is a jock, and if I don't tell her how it is now, how am I going to be able to say 'I told you so' when they break up? See? I'm doing this for her own good. Besides, why are you guys so upset? You know she's a drama queen. She makes big deal out of everything. And I mean _everything_!"

Nora looked at her step-son. "We all know Casey sometimes has a habit of...um... over-reacting a bit... but..."

Derek interrupted her. "A bit?" He raised his eyebrows at Nora.

She sighed. "Ok, maybe a lot. But, Max and Casey are in this weird place right now after that first beak-up. I think you need to be slightly more sensitive towards her."

Derek couldn't help but laugh at this statement. "Sensitive? You want _me_ to be sensitive?."

George chucked slightly and earned a glare from his wife. "Derek is not the sensitive kind Nora. I think, what Derek would understand is something more in the lines of... if he didn't reduce the fighting with Casey, he will be grounded untill he leaves"

Derek's laughter faltered when he heard his father. "But, Dad, you would not really consider grounding your son because you realize that he has been a hard worker by getting a hockey scholarship and this is his last few weeks to enjoy London right?" Even as he said it, Derek had a feeling that his father might not fall for his argument.

And he was right.

"Derek, I think that if you really want to enjoy London, you would treat Casey better. I think the whole family needs a break from your fighting."

"But, Dad, you will be having enough of a break from us when Space Case and I leave. Besides, she picks a fight over every small little thing. It's impossible to do what you want."

"You know what? You're right." Derek smirked recognising that he was winning the argument. "So, what I will do is sweeten the deal. If you do your best to not provoke Casey or insult her in any way..."

"Dad!"

George continued as if he didn't hear his son's protests, "No curfew from now on till you leave."

Derek's face broke out into a full out grin as Nora protested to this turn of events. "Georgie, do you think that's a wise idea?"

"Actually, Nora, I do. If Derek wants no curfew, he has to be more mindful of Casey's feelings. So, what do you say Derek? Do we have a deal?"

Derek pretended to weigh the pros and cons fully aware of the five pairs of eyes watching him, even though he had already made up his mind. "Well... I guess if you _really_ want me to stop bugging Casey then I could give it a try." He was already thinking of ways of getting a rise out of his super keener step-sister in a way that she couldn't run to mummy to complain. 

Derek grinned."It's a deal."


	2. Chapter 2

Derek groaned as he hit his head against his locker for what felt like the fiftieth time. Mondays. Why Mondays? Why couldn't the week not have a Monday and instead start on a Tuesday? But, then again, school will be on Tuesday and he'll be at square one all over again. He let out another frustrated groan. Oh God! He hated Mondays!

"Hey man!" Derek recognised Sam's voice as he continued to periodically knock his head gently against the locker. He might be frustrated, but he wasn't going to bruise himself or get potentially injured as a result. "Um... Dude? What the hell are you doing?"

Derek didn't bother to look up as his head rested against the cool metal surface. "I hate Mondays," he mumbled.

" _Right_. Well, you're not the only one. What's up?"

Derek sighed before he turned to face his best friend while leaning against the locker he had been knocking his forehead against for the past five minutes. "It's Casey. Did you notice what happened today?"

Sam gave Derek a look which clearly said that he was trying to understand where his friend was going with this. But deciding that Derek would explain himself if he answered the question, he thought back towards everything that happened to Casey throughout the day. "Um... Yeah. I guess. Her stuff all fell out when she opened her locker, someone threw spaghetti at her during lunch, and she went around school with a 'Klutzilla' sign on her back until Emily told her about it. What does that have to do with hating Mondays?"

"Well... Casey seems to think that I might have orchestrated these things even though I clearly had alibis when all these things happened. And she's threatening to tell the 'rents. All bad things happen on Mondays," Derek said with a whine.

Sam looked at Derek expectantly. "Well, did you?"

Derek sighed. "I might have had something to do with it. But, that's besides the point. I needed to do this. I was going mad being polite and nice to Little-Miss-Prissy Space Case the whole weekend, it nearly killed me. School was the only place where I could prank her and get away with it. I can't lose my no curfew privilege. It's the best thing that's happened to me. Well, that, and the Prince. And not to mention when the 'rents find out, I'll be grounded," Derek stated looking disgusted.

"So, Dude, just sneak out like last time. You can't not show up for the party this Friday. How would it look if the hockey captain is a no show when it's hosted by the hockey team?"

"There is a bit of a problem with that. Space Case knows about the party, and if she tells the 'rents, and they ground me, you can bet she's going to do anything her devious little mind can think of to make me miss that party."

Sam racked his brain for a solution to the problem Derek has gotten himself into. "Isn't there any way you can convince her not to tell your parents?"

"Dude! Were you seriously not listening to me? We are talking about Casey here. You know, the annoyingly perky bookworm who cannot be "bought"? Besides I'm following the didn't-do-it-and-you-can't-prove-that-I-did defence."

Sam gave Derek a disbelieving look."And you think your parents are going to believe that?"

"Not a chance"

"So, lets give something that Casey wants. What does she want? Your i pod? For you to stop burping the alphabet? Or something more sensible like the chance to beat you up with a hockey stick? Cos whatever it is, I think we should let her have it." Sam laughed lightly at his own joke as Derek scowled.

"Gee, Sam, who knew I had such a LOYAL friend who would rather see me beaten up by a nerd than miss a party. I'm touched, really."

Sam suddenly beamed at the mention of the party. "Dude! That's it! Invite her for the party!" Derek let out a loud bark of laughter at the solution his best friend came up with. "Dude! You serious? I am NOT inviting her for the party. It's invitees only. REMEMBER? As in cool people and ONLY cool people."

Sam however was not deterred. "Exactly man. You would be inviting her for the hottest party of the year, she wouldn't want to pass that up. Trust me. She'll let you off the hook."

Derek still wasn't convinced. "But what made the party so great was the fact that Casey wasn't going to be there. Having her there would ruin my night. Sorry, but I'm not willing to take that chance."

Sam shook his head at his friend's stubbornness. "It's your choice Derek. You could give something to Casey that she wants and get away with the pranks. Or you could be grounded while the hottest party is happening in our senior year." Sam shrugged. "Either way, it's your choice."

Derek groaned again resuming the gentle abuse he was putting his forehead through. Sam was right and he knew what he had to do.

Casey pushed her books into her locker a bit more violently than necessary. Today was not a good day. Her locker was rigged, she got spaghetti dumped on her, and she had to face whispering and snickering everywhere she went because of that stupid 'Klutzilla' sign. And the person responsible for making her Monday a living hell was none other than her idiot of a step-brother Derek Venturi. She was sure that he was getting back at her for the ultimatum that George put forward to him. She actually enjoyed the weekend because of it. Derek was polite and didn't attempt to get under her skin. She should have known that it was too good to last. It did seem like an effort for him not to insult her every chance he got. But she never thought he would retaliate with such full force and humiliate her in front of the whole school. When she confronted him however, he acted completely ignorant of all that happened to her, and just to unnerve him, she had mentioned that her mom and George would not believe his word over hers. That was when she saw the panic in his eyes. At least she has something to fight back with. And thank God for Emily. She didn't know how she would have survived today if it weren't for her. Where was Max when she needed him?

"Hey". Casey saw Emily practically power walk towards her since it was 'against the rules' to run in the halls. "I've got the biggest news," she squealed enthusiastically.

"Bigger than me being made the biggest joke of all time?" Casey said with a sigh. She doubted that anyone would forget today's fiasco anytime soon.

Emily's wide grin didn't waver. "Actually, yeah. I know something that would make everyone forget about the woes of Casey McDonald."

"Really?" Casey couldn't hide her interest. She was desperate for anything to get her out of this rut.

Emily leaned towards Casey as if she was about to divulge potentially earth shattering news, her excitement was evident. "Well, turns out that Beth cheated on Tyler, the quarterback? He had apparently walked in on Beth and Aiden going at it in the library. And lets just say that Tyler walked in on them while they were just about to pass second base." Emily let out a tiny squeal of delight."See? Now who's going to remember Klutzilla Casey? The whole school's talking about this."

"Wow." Emily wasn't kidding. This was earth shattering news, but for Beth. She will be labeled a slut and she will have to face the sexist comments from the perverted males of the school as well as the scorn of all the girls who will judge her. Casey's heart went out to her. When there are rumors of guys cheating, somehow it's more accepted than a girl cheating. She hated the fact that society was so sexist. "Poor Beth"

Emily was slightly taken aback by Casey's response for she expected something a bit more in the line of happiness or maybe even relief. "Um... Yeah, I guess. But, aren't you happy that people are not talking about you now?"

Casey looked at her best friend then. "Well, yeah, I kinda am. It's just... I'm still Klutzilla. It's never going to change."

"Yeah.. I guess you're right." Suddenly something caught Emily's eye over Casey's shoulder. "But maybe you can get an apology."

Casey turned her head to see what Emily was looking at just in time to see Derek lean against the locker next to hers. "Hey Em." He smirked as she visibly blushed and replied with an enthusiastic "Hi Derek."

Casey couldn't help but role her eyes at this exchange. "What do you want Derek? Humiliating me three times a day not enough?" She fixed him with a glare which she hoped would make him fear bodily harm. But no such luck. His smirk was still firmly fixed on his face as he relaxed into his laid back stance. "I have a proposition for you," he stated confidently. Casey couldn't help but raise her eyebrows at this, and waited for him to continue. A proposition meant one thing. He was worried that she would tell her mother and George about the pranks, and he was worried that he would be grounded. Casey had to fight to keep from smirking herself. She was curious as to what Derek had come up with, and she was determined to be difficult.

"Turns out that we have a few extra tickets for the party this Friday, and since you are after all.. family.. I think I can get you one. But the ticket is good only if I go. After all, someone has to vouch for you."

Casey felt like slapping the smirk off his face. Of course he would try to bribe her, that was the Venturi way. Completely ignoring Emily's squeals of excitement, Casey put on her best poker face. "So, in other words, you don't get grounded and I get to go?"

"Well... I guess you could look at it like that. Or you could see it for what it really is. Your super cool step-brother who is willing to ruin his reputation by inviting his socially challenged klutzy step-sister to the biggest party of the year. I'm doing you a favour here Case. And it's not like any party thrown by the football players could rival ours either."

Casey felt her blood boil at that statement. She was aware that the football team weren't invited for this Friday's party which is been thrown by the hockey team since their falling out a few weeks back which caused majority of both teams to suffer suspensions including Derek and Max. Why males felt the need to fight it out she would never understand. And it always seemed that Derek did have a personal vendetta against Max although she doubted whether even he knew why. Did Derek seriously expect her to go for a party that her boyfriend was not invited to? He was more dense than she thought. "Are you serious? You really think I should be grateful that you're inviting me for a party that I don't care to go for in the first place? Because if you think for one minute that-"

"And did I forget to mention that you could bring Emily? It's possible to get an invite for her too." Derek smoothly interrupted, giving Emily his signature smirk. Emily immediately turned towards Casey with a look pleading with her to take the tickets. Casey glared at Derek then. The sneaky little Devil! He was playing them. Emily had been talking about this party for the past few months as _the_ party she had to attend before she graduated. She was extremely disappointed when she didn't get the invite and Casey was well aware that her pride and hatred for Derek had to battle her love for Emily. She couldn't help but look at her best friend one more time, knowing this meant the world to her, and feeling that she did owe her something for sticking it out with the school klutz. Casey sighed, feeling defeated. So much for being difficult.

"Fine. I guess Em and I will be needing those invites." Derek's smirk became more confident, if that was possible, and Emily bounced up and down in excitement pulling Casey into a hug and thanking her over and over. At least Em knew how hard it was for her to accept this 'proposition'.

"Great! Then I'll see you ladies later" Derek said parting from the girls with a wink towards Emily. He couldn't help but notice Casey rolling her eyes at that moment, like he knew she would. She was so predictable.

Casey turned to Emily who was still jumping in excitement "You owe me."

"I know, I know Case. And thank you, thank you, thank you!" Emily squealed loudly causing the students passing them to give them amused glances. Casey blushed at the attention although Emily couldn't care less. There was just one thought that suddenly appeared in her mind that caused her to panic. What was she going to tell Max?

* * *

Derek couldn't help the wide grin which was plastered on his face as he headed towards Sam who had been watching the discussion a few lockers away. "Done and done."

"She agreed?" Sam was slightly surprised. He knew Casey would have most probably wanted to go for the party, but he doubted if she would accept the invite since Max wasn't invited.

"Yup. Couldn't get her to stop begging for them." Derek knew he was exaggerating, but Sam need not know that.

"I bet." Sam rolled his eyes, aware that his best friend was exaggerating, if not lying. "Looks like the guys will be happy then," Sam stated looking at Casey. He suddenly realized what he had said and quickly looked towards Derek to gauge his reaction. He could have breathed a sigh of relief as he saw his friend's confused face.

"What are you talking about?"

"Nothing man. Just forget I said anything." It was times like this that Sam wished he had the gift of the gab or the uncanny ability to make up lies on the spot. He knew Derek wouldn't drop it and he was right.

"You were looking at Casey when you said that." Derek stated slowly as if he was pondering the statement in his head while trying to figure out what exactly Sam meant. "And you said the guys will be happy. And if you were looking at Casey, that means, those guys will be happy that she's coming for the party. Who would possibly be happy that she's coming for the party?" Derek's previously confused expression didn't leave his face. He couldn't imagine anyone who wanted Casey to come for the party.

Sam sighed. "Like I said, dude, it's nothing. Just some locker room talk." Again Sam wished he hadn't said anything. Why did he mention the locker room? Now Derek would know he meant the guys in the team. Boy, was he on a role today.

Derek crossed his arms over his chest and fixed Sam with a glare, hoping to convey that Sam better drop the act. "Spill." It was a simple order that has never failed.

"Look." Sam gave Derek a defeated look. "I swore to the other guys that I wouldn't tell you, so you cant let them know that you found out k?" Derek nodded. He and Sam both knew that locker room rules were sacred and he had a feeling that whatever Sam was going to tell him couldn't be that bad, because if it was, he would have heard about it sooner. "Some of the guys have a thing for Casey." Sam braced himself for an outburst, but was met with loud laughter instead. Derek was laughing so hard he had unintentionally bent in half, he felt like his lungs would burst. Sam waited patiently until Derek took a few deep breaths to calm himself down knowing that what he was going to say next might either make Derek laugh more or want to punch something.

"Dude! Are you serious? Why haven't I heard this? Never mind. This is hilarious! Are the guys idiots or something? Besides she's with little Maxy. Do they expect her to dump him for one of them?" Derek shook his head, while trying to comprehend the stupidity of his teammates. Sure, the guys were way better than Max could ever be, but he doubted that would date any one of them.

Sam took a deep breath, while mentally preparing himself. "Actually dude, they don't want to date her." Derek gave his friend a puzzled look. "There is a bet going around on who could get into her pants at the party." Sam noted Derek's smirk immediately falter to be replaced by a murderous look. Derek's stance became rigid as his hands were balled into fists. Those Bastards! And to think he thought they were better than Max. Derek could vaguely hear Sam trying to calm him with statements that sounded a lot like 'the team was probably joking' and 'none of them have the balls to go through with it', but he wasn't paying attention. How could he, when all he could think of was ripping them limb from limb with his bare hands?

Derek's gaze suddenly fixed on Sam which caused him to take a few steps back for fear of getting a punch thrown at him. "Who?" Derek's voice was so low that Sam had to strain to hear what he said. "Who's in on the bet?" Derek's glare didn't falter as he stared daggers at Sam.

"I don't know man. I overheard a few guys talking about it after the last practice." Sam wished he hadn't told Derek anything. Why didn't he have a back bone when it came to his friend? He should have put up a better fight before mentioning the bet.

Derek's eyes darkened at the mention of last Saturday's hockey practice. He slowly advanced towards Sam, his voice and his body betraying barely controlled rage. "Are you telling me, that you knew about the bet, and you got me to invite her for the party anyway?" Derek's voice had gotten gradually louder with each syllable causing passers- by to stop and listen. It wasn't everyday that Derek Venturi made a scene. Sam noticed they were holding the interest of his fellow classmates and took a few steps towards Derek in an attempt to rectify the situation. He held up his hands in a defensive gesture as he leaned towards Derek. "Dude, I didn't think she would say yes, and like I said, the guys were probably joking. Now, can we not talk about this in front of everyone?" Sam whispered glancing around nervously.

Derek took a deep breath hoping to calm himself. He knew that Sam was right. They didn't need to start a scene and let the gossip mongers take over. Unfortunately, he was still pissed. A part of him wanted to punch Sam in the face right then and there and not give a shit for gossip or suspension. But then another voice in his head disagreed which sounded remarkably like Casey and her stupid logic. The irritating voice reminded him that this was his senior year, and there was no point in getting into a fight with his best friend in a crowded hallway and risk suspension when he could easily beat him up outside and away from prying eyes. "Fine." Derek snapped and noted Sam's face relax, which caused him to get pissed even more. He didn't want Sam to feel safe from him. Grabbing his jacket, Derek dragged Sam in search of an empty room, all the while ignoring all the curious stares.

Shoving Sam into a deserted classroom Derek slammed the door shut and faced his best friend. Sam tried a final attempt to reach Derek's non-violent nature. "Look man, I don't really know why you're so pissed, but you _do_ realize that it's Casey that we are talking about here. She's not stupid and she thinks the hockey team is full of brainless idiots. She has never given them the time of day, and I doubt that she will at the party either." Encouraged by Derek's gradually relaxing stance, he continued. "And not to mention that Casey has a boyfriend. She's not the type to cheat."

Derek sighed running a trembling hand through his hair. He didn't understand why he was so mad either. All he knew was as soon as Sam had mentioned the bet he just felt blind rage and nothing else. He looked over at his friend who gave him an understanding look. "You're right," he mumbled. Besides, he should have known better. Sam cares a lot for Casey. So if Sam wasn't worried, he shouldn't be either. But what bugged Derek was the fact that he was worried in the first place. "Sorry, dude, I don't know what came over me."

Sam nodded giving him an amused smirk."No worries. If someone was betting on my sister I would have gone chainsaw massacre on their asses."

"Step-sister," Derek automatically corrected and let out a low chuckle. Shaking his head he sat down in the nearest chair. He suddenly felt tired as if the anger itself was exhausting. Rubbing his eyes, he let out a low breath. Derek felt lighter as if a massive weight had lifted off his shoulders as he thought about how Casey would reject the advances by his idiotic teammates. Suddenly remembering something, Derek looked at Sam. "You still didn't tell me who's in on the bet."

Even though Derek was relatively less pissed, Sam was aware that mentioning the names might cause their senior year to end with a lot of bruises and blood. So, for the sake of his teammates and his best friend, he lied. "Sorry, dude, I just overheard two of the guys talking about it when I was leaving. They didn't mention any names. Wasn't sure who they were either since they were in the shower area." Derek nodded, as if he knew it would be a long shot to find the culprits. Seeing how his friend bought the lie, Sam couldn't help but wonder why he couldn't come up with lies consistently.

Derek sighed and stood up."Well, better get to class then, before Vanderwood throws a bitch fit."

Sam chuckled and followed Derek out of the classroom, thankful that the days drama was over. At least for now.


	3. Chapter 3

Casey sat cross-legged on her bed while nervously fidgeting with the ring on her right hand. It was a habit she had picked up ever since she received it as a birthday present from her father. Once again she glanced at the cordless phone she had placed on her desk, wondering how to go about relating the news of the day to her boyfriend. A few months ago, this would not have been a problem. She would have confidently told him that it was her decision and standing behind her feminist beliefs, she would have stood her ground. But a lot of things have changed since then. The relationship wasn't as fun or even care free as it used to be. She wasn't sure what was different, but since they made up, they were both strained, and everything seemed more of an effort. Just as she was contemplating the exact words she would use when she called Max, Lizzie walked in with a curious expression on her face. "Hey, what's up?"

"Hey, Liz," Casey replied scooting over so as to make room for her little sister on the bed. "Nothings up."

"Really?" Lizzie asked skepticism evident on her features as she took a seat beside her sister. "Then why have you been staring at the phone since you got home?"

Casey sighed. She might as well tell her sister, it's not like they hide things from each other anyway." Derek invited me for a party, which Max is not invited for."

"Okay." Lizzie looked at Casey expectantly. "So, if you think Max would have a problem, don't go."

"I cant! If I don't go, Em doesn't go. And she really, _really_ wants to go."

"Oh. So why exactly can't Emily go alone?" She was still confused as to the problem.

"Because, Derek broke his promise to George, and he's trying to bribe me with the party tickets so I wont tell. I would have refused if it weren't for that idiot offering to give Em a ticket as long as I go."

"Okay." Lizzie nodded, understanding the situation. "So, then you are in a position of power."

Casey looked at her younger sister, confused, until what Lizzie said dawned on her. "Oh my God Liz, you're totally right. I have the power. I could get Derek to do anything to keep my mouth shut. He could even be my slave." Casey squealed. "Thanks Liz." She smiled now fully at ease.

"No problem." Lizzie shrugged getting off the bed. As she was about to exit the room she turned towards her sister who had, what most people would describe as a potentially sinister look. "Oh and Casey? Don't be too evil k?" Lizzie winked and was met by a familiar smirk.

"Don't worry Liz, Derek will get  _exactly_  what he deserves." As Lizzie was leaving her sister's bedroom she couldn't help but wonder if Casey knew how much Derek influenced her as she saw the ever familiar Venturi smirk graze her face.

\--

Derek was doing what he always did after a tiring day of school. He was lying on his bed, his eyes closed, listening to System of a Down. Today was particularly tiring for several reasons. Linda, the latest addition to the cheer-leading squad to replace Casey was getting harder to ditch. She was practically stalking him. He went out with her once, two weeks ago, and has been avoiding her since, she should really get a clue. And finding out that he has a project due by Friday which would normally take two weeks to prepare didn't help either. Especially since Ed was no help with his new found back bone, and he was pretty low on cash so buying his brothers' services were out of the question. But what really tired out Derek were the constant thoughts running through his head. He needed them to stop. He wasn't used to thinking so much. And the thoughts themselves were driving him crazy.

Sam! he blamed Sam. Derek let out a frustrated groan as he remembered the conversation. How could his best friend do this to him? Such thoughts were surely illegal. But then again, it wasn't as if Sam saying those things about Casey caused him to look at her differently, did it? No, of course not. She was the same preppy, annoying Casey. Nothing has changed.

Derek sighed. If nothing had changed, then why was he suddenly admiring her body? No, he wasn't admiring her body, he was just checking out for himself whether Sam's comments were baseless. His best friend spent most of the ride home trying to explain to Derek why people found Casey attractive. Derek blamed himself for that, he should never have asked. But then again, he was curious. He just didn't understand why his teammates wanted to nail her. That thought still made him want to scream bloody murder, especially after his best friend mentioned how she had dancers legs. He knew that Sam had skillfully kept him away from the players throughout the day, which he was grateful for. He had no idea how he was going to face them without causing some pain come Wednesday's practice. Why did he care? He was such a hypocrite, he had won bets like these before. So, why did he care that it was Casey?

His self encouraged mental turmoil ceased when the object of his frustration entered his bedroom and systematically turned off his stereo. He didn't move since he knew it was her. No one else would have walked in without knocking first. And nothing would irritate her more than him ignoring her.

"I don't like your proposition." Derek could hear the irritation in her voice. Looks like he was doing the right thing by not acknowledging her presence. "Didn't you hear me? I said I don't like your proposition."

"Heard you the first time Princess," Derek mumbled lazily.

He could hear Casey huff beside him. "Well then, change it." He could picture her tapping her foot impatiently with her arms folded across her chest in irritation. For some reason that mental image of Casey brought a smile to his face.

"What are you smiling at?" Derek chose to continue ignoring her. "Are you finding this amusing? This is not funny Derek, look at me." It was getting harder and harder not to laugh. He was itching to open one eye and see her scrunched up face, but he fought the urge, aware that if he did that, she would be the one winning, not him. He had to keep his cool. "DE-REK. LOOK AT ME!"

That's when the first blow was struck causing Derek to jerk upwards. He raised his arms in defence when he saw Casey preparing to take another swing at him with one of his pillows. "What the hell, Case." He complained as she repeatedly delivered blow after blow to his head, stomach and legs. "Derek Venturi, you are SO INFURIATING!"

He couldn't help but laugh at his step-sister's lack of punishment skills, which only caused her to become more violent towards him. Did she really think this would hurt him? Seeing his chance, he tackled her to the floor while trying to grab the pillow away from her. They struggled for a few moments each trying to knock the other away while still trying to control the weapon of their choice. Finally, it was Casey who got the upper hand when she managed to somehow get on top of Derek as she continuously hit him. Derek's arms were constantly trying to protect himself until he realized that he had to restrain the attacker, and not claim possession of the pillow. As Casey prepared to strike him again, Derek caught her wrists in a flash twisting her so that she was the one under him and the pillow lay forgotten beside them.

"Let me go, Derek," Casey whined as she tried to squirm her way out of his grasp.

Derek chuckled at her failing attempts. She really had to learn that he was a lot stronger than she was. "Not till you say that you bow down to the name Derek Venturi."

Casey scoffed."Never." She said raising her face in defiance.

"Fine then." Derek smirked. He moved her wrists so that he was holding them with one hand leaving his other hand free. Casey noticed this and instantly panicked.

"Derek! Don't even think about it." His smirk grew as her begging became more insistent. "Derek! I'm serious. Don't do it. I swear you'll regret it. Derek?" But he wasn't listening, he moved his hand to her side, and Casey tried and failed to squirm away from his fingers.

"DE-REK" She screamed as he poked her again and again, tickling her into submission. "Stop." She giggled. "Stop."

"Say it Case." Derek chuckled. "Say it, and I'll stop."

"No." Casey managed to gasp. "Never!"

"Come on. Say it. You know you want to," he whispered.

Casey shook her head, afraid to open her mouth in fear that she  _would_  say it. "Say it." Derek wasn't planning on letting up.

Suddenly a knock on his bedroom door caused them both to whip their heads around to see Nora giving them an amused look. Casey, realising that Derek was straddling her in front of her mother pushed him off her as she stood up, aware that a violent blush had plagued her face. "Hi mom, dinner ready?"

Nora thought it was best to follow her daughter's lead and pretend that this adorable moment between them never happened. "Yes, that's why I came up to call you two. Come on lets go." She said leading the teens downstairs. These are the moments which gave her hope, the moments where Derek and Casey act friendly if not civil to each other. She just wished these moments would replace the violent ones.

As Derek followed Nora and Casey downstairs, he couldn't help but wonder what came over him a few minutes back. He had acted towards Casey, the way he acted towards his Smarti. This type of playfulness wasn't out of the blue either. He didn't understand when his resolve to hate Casey McDonald started to fail. And a part of him was fearful that if he didn't hate her, and he was thinking certain thoughts about her.. he visibly shuddered.. unwilling to finish that thought. He unintentionally shot Casey a glare as he took his seat at the dining table. One thought repeated itself in his head, again and again. He needed to hate her.

\--

Casey leaned against the kitchen counter and watched Derek and Edwin as they sat on the couch, completely intent on their video game. Dinner was a bit more weird than usual. Derek constantly glared at her throughout the meal, which confused her since she wasn't aware of doing anything that could encourage such a reaction. She wished she could understand him. But Derek Venturi was hard to read. He could be a jerk then do a complete one eighty and be nice towards her.

"So, I never expected to see you and Derek having such a good time." Casey turned around to face her mother who had just entered the kitchen from the laundry room.

Casey felt herself blush."Neither did I." She ignored the urge to look at Derek and instead turned fully to face her mother, while leaning her elbows on the counter.

Nora nodded. "I'm just happy you two have mellowed down a bit. It took you long enough."

"Yeah, and you'd never know, maybe in another twenty years, we might even exchange pleasantries," Casey replied bitterly.

Nora couldn't help but smile at Casey's optimism. "I don't know. Maybe it will be as sooner than you think. At least you're not  _always_  at each others throats like when you first moved in. I think he's finally started to accept us. Soon, he might even be thinking of you as his sister."

Casey shook her head. "Mom, Derek will never see me as a sister, not like he sees Lizzie, and truthfully, I don't think that I could ever see him as a brother. I know you and George have this dream that we could be one big happy family, but Derek and I are.. well.. not family."

"I just think you need to give it more time Case." Nora stated patiently. She had given this speech to Casey countless times.

"I know mom. I'm just saying what I see." Casey looked back at her step-brothers and noticed that they hadn't shifted for the past hour. "Well, I better go and finish my homework then." Nora nodded while watching Casey leave the kitchen and head towards the living room. She didn't notice however, the subject of their discussion intently watch the movements of her daughter as she climbed the stairs and after a few moments of consideration, follow her.

\--

What was he doing? That question was easy, he was walking towards his annoying step-sister's room. But why? That question was relatively more difficult to answer. Taking a deep breath, he pushed open her door and walked in, closing the door behind him. Casey looked up from her desk to give him a scowling look. "What do you want Derek?"

Derek looked down at her with his famous smirk as he leaned against her doorway, arms crossed smugly over his chest. "I'm here to do you a favour."

"Me? A favour?" Casey scoffed. "This ought to be good."

"I've decided to change my proposition, since you asked  _so_  nicely." Derek waited till Casey said something, but when she raised her eyebrows at him questioningly, he continued. "I, in all my fairness and glory have decided that I will invite Emily for the party, but not you. This way, we are  _all_  happy. Emily gets to go, I get to go, and you and Max can stay home and play twenty questions. We all win." Derek couldn't believe he didn't think of this before.

Casey however studied her step-brother. He stood completely confident smirking at her as if he knew this was the best deal she would get. But something was not right. Derek didn't want her to go for the party. It was true that she couldn't care less if she went or not, but the fact that Derek didn't want her to go, made her change her mind. "Oh, I don't think so Derek, I want in on that party." She stood up and walked towards him, her hands crossed over her chest. "And if I don't get in, I'm telling George."

Derek wasn't expecting this. Composing himself, he leaned forward hoping his stance would threaten her enough to change her mind. "If you tell my Dad, Emily's out."

"And if Emily and I are out, I tell George." Casey countered.

"Why do you suddenly want to go anyway? It's not like you wanted to in the first place."

She knew it! He didn't want her to go. The nerve of him! "And why don't you want me to go? It's not like we haven't been in the same school for three years. It's not like I wouldn't know anyone at the party. And it's certainly not that I could ruin your rep this late in the game. What is it Derek? What's the reason that you don't want me to come?" Casey was now so close to him that she could practically feel his breath on her face.

Derek's eyes narrowed. "No, it's none of those things. It's the simple fact that I can't stand you anymore. You are  _everywhere_  I go. I have no peace or quiet in my own school, in my own house and certainly not in my own room since  _you_  moved in." He noticed how Casey's eyes suddenly lost some of it's luster but he couldn't stop. "This is the senior party that MY team is throwing, and I want to be able to enjoy one night of Casey free drama. Is that too much to ask? So why wont you just shut up and take the fucking deal?" His breath came out ragged. He couldn't believe he said what he did.

Casey moved back as if he had slapped her. He had never sworn at her like that before, even if he was beyond pissed. Her shock however, dissolved into anger as she stood her ground. "No Derek. I will not take the 'fucking' deal. Haven't you learned by now that I will NEVER do what you want?"

"Of course. Why should the great Casey McDonald listen to anyone but herself? After all, no one is as perfect as she is." he replied sarcastically.

"Like anyone should listen to Derek Venturi who has issues with simple intellectual problems." She countered.

"Simple intellectual problems? What are we talking about here, your math skills? Cause if we are, we both know how  _you_  really need help in that department."

"Like I'll ever need help from you. You're the one who's lazy enough NOT to do your own projects."

"And I suppose being the teacher's pet as opposed to being actually liked by people is better?"

"As if being Mr.Popular is all important. When will you learn Derek? It's not the end of the world if you don't rule the school." She shot back.

"This, from a grade-grubber who tried to change her rep by using me, and when that failed, latched unto the captain of the football team? Classy Case." He sneered.

"How dare you! At least I'm not the one who is incapable of holding onto a relationship for more than a few hours. What's wrong Derek? Do the girls realize you're full of bullshit after the first fifteen minutes?"

"Tell me something Case, why is it that no one likes you? Could it be your snobbishness? Or the fact that you're a super keener? Or maybe, it's the fact that you think you're better than EVERYONE."

"I'm not the one with the ego here Derek, you are. It's always, look at me, I scored a goal, look at me, I scored a chick. Are you afraid of applying yourself cause you don't want to fail? NEWS FLASH! You're not good at anything that matters."

"Hockey matters!" He growled.

"You wish." Casey scoffed. "At least I apply myself, at least I will go somewhere in life and be somebody, which is more than I can say for you. You'll probably end up pumping my gas."

"Ha! As if that's a bad thing. Let me tell you princess, even if I was destined to pump your gas, I know I will be happier than you would ever be. I will have friends, I will constantly have people around me. But you? You might be successful, but you'll be alone. You'll live your life buried in work. And while all your so called friends settle down, do you know where you'll be? At home, alone, thinking back to all the boyfriends you had, wondering why none of them stuck around."

Casey could feel her eyes begin to water. He had struck a chord with that last point. How did he know that her biggest fear was to be old and alone and not have a husband and family to come back home to? She had to get away before he saw her cry and smirk in smug satisfaction.

Casey hastily walked around Derek, trying to reach her bedroom door, but he was quick, grabbing her arm roughly, he made her face him. "Casey." Hearing the sternness in his voice, she looked up at him. Derek didn't look smug, or satisfied, instead, he had regret in his eyes. Under any other normal circumstances, she would have struggled and pushed him away from her. But the look in his eyes kept her still. Neither turned away from each other. Derek was looking at her with such intensity that she felt herself become nervous, especially since she was aware that they were standing so close that their feet almost touched. Time seemed to stop until she noticed his glance shift downwards to her mouth. The realization caused her heart to beat uncontrollably. He wasn't going to.. was he? He seemed to be moving closer and closer, all the while, his gaze fixed on her parted lips. Casey's mind was in a state of panic, although her body was incapable of movement. This was wrong. This was Derek. This was..

"Casey! Phone call!" Lizzie's voice broke their reverie causing them both to jump away from each other. Casey's bedroom door opened revealing her sister holding out the cordless phone. "It's Max."

Casey could feel Derek's eyes on her as she forced a smiled and picked up the phone."Thanks Liz." Without another word Derek stormed out of her room and entered his, slamming the door shut behind him. Ignoring her sister's curious glances, Casey closed her door and sat down on the bed, in an effort to compose herself. Feeling relatively less shaken, she placed the phone to her ear. "Hi Max." She just hoped her boyfriend couldn't tell that she was distracted by the recent behaviour of her step-brother.

\--

Derek was seated in the back seat of his car, making out with a very attractive blond on his lap. He should have been enjoying this, especially since she was trailing kisses down his neck and her hands were expertly running over his chest. But he was distracted, his mind refused to forget a certain blue eyed brunette.

"Hey," Meg breathlessly stated between kisses. "Do you want to finish this in my room? I'm sure you'll be able to sneak out after, like last time."

Derek gently pushed her slightly off him. "Sorry, but as much fun as this is, I've got a curfew to go back to." A part of him was mentally kicked himself for turning her offer down especially since they were parked a few yards from her house.

She giggled. "Oh come on. That's never stopped you before." She leaned into him further, gently nipping his ear.

Damn! He was getting turned on, and she knew it. Stopping her hands from wandering lower, he shifted her off him. "Sorry babe. Gotta go. But this was fun."

She looked at him incredulously. "You called me in the middle of the night to make out?"

"No, I wanted to do more than make out." He said truthfully. "I just gotta go. But we'll do this some other time." The promise sounded empty to his ears.

But she didn't seem to notice. "Okay." She leaned forward kissing him once on the lips. "Give me a call then." She giggled, exiting the car.

Derek sighed getting in to the driver's seat, and heading home. He was hoping that Meg would be a sufficient distraction from all thoughts Casey related. After the 'incident' as he referred to it, occurred, he had called up the first girl he could think of believing that the only reason he even contemplated kissing his step sister was because he was horny. But since that theory was shot to hell, he was more confused than ever. He didn't know where all these sudden feelings were coming from. And he didn't like it one bit. He didn't want to analyze what was happening to him, that was what Casey did. She would think things over and over until she confused herself to no end. But him, he wasn't a thinker. And here he was entering his house on a Monday night thoughts galore.

He noticed the lights were off, which caused him to look at his watch in confusion. He had no idea it was so late. Good thing he didn't need to sneak in thanks to the no curfew right. Opening the garage door which led to the kitchen, he stopped in surprise to see the lights on and Casey, in her sleep wear, pouring herself a glass of water. Hearing the door open, she had stilled, not expecting anyone. They looked at each other, neither saying a word until Derek started to move towards the stairs.

"Where were you?" Casey's voice stopped him.

"Out." He kept his back towards her. Then, against his better judgement, he turned to face her. "How was your little chat with Max?" He winced inwardly at how jealous he sounded.

"It was fine." She looked at him defiantly. "He's coming back tomorrow."

"You must be happy. At least now you'll have more than one person in school to talk to." He saw the hurt in her eyes and knew that what he said was uncalled for. He wanted to kick himself. But he just felt such a strong need to hurt her, even though he doubted that her pain would make him feel any better.

Casey chose to let that statement slide. "So, which bimbo did you visit tonight?

Derek crossed his arms over his chest, determined to play dumb. "What makes you think I was with  _any_  girl tonight?"

Casey rolled her eyes, as if that was the most dumbest question he could have asked. Then, surprising him, she took a few steps forward until she was face to face with him. "You smell like her." She whispered, looking unflinchingly into his eyes.

Derek felt his breath hitch. Somehow this situation seemed intimate. It was as if he and Casey had their own non-verbal language. And in her non-verbal dialect, she was making him feel shame for what he did before that night.

It was Casey who finally broke their eye contact as she turned to leave. But something in Derek didn't want her to go just yet. Giving into that impulse, he grabbed her arm, stopping her in her tracks. "Why do you care if I smell like her?" he asked softly, trying to read her expression.

"I don't."

"You sure sound like you do."

"Well, you're wrong." She looked down at his hand that encircled her arm. "You can let go now."

Fighting the unexplained need to hold on to her, he did as she asked. Not trusting himself, he took a step back. Casey gave him a confused look before fleeing upstairs.

Derek watched her leave wondering what just happened. He didn't understand what was happening to them or what was happening to him.


	4. Chapter 4

"Casey!" Turning around from her locker, Casey was met with a hug from the owner of the voice. "I missed you."

"I missed you too Max." She smiled into his shoulder while returning the hug. He placed a chaste kiss on her cheek as they pulled away. It was another reminder to Casey how different their relationship was right now. He hadn't kissed her fully on the lips for over two weeks, just pecks here and there.

"Hey, Max," Emily quipped beside her. "How was the trip with the family?"

Max chuckled while looking between Casey and Emily. "I think they have gotten enough of me. I wont be surprised if they encourage me to go away for the summer before college."

"I know the feeling." Emily said giving an all knowing look. "My mom, suddenly wanted to have some major mother-daughter time, and after three days, she was like, I need my own personal space too." She shook her head. "I swear, I cannot understand parents."

"I know." Max nodded. "When my parents first told me about the trip, I thought it was a trick to get back at me for the suspension. I was lucky that they decided to use that time so that I only missed one day of school." He suddenly looked at his girlfriend who seemed to be in her own world. "Hey, you okay?"

Startled slightly by his question, Casey turned to Max, a bright smile on her face. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just a bit distracted I guess."

"By what?" He couldn't help his curiosity. What could be distracting Casey from seeing him for the first time in just over a week?

Casey panicked. She was never a great liar, and she didn't know what possible tale she could pull out of her head that could make Max not want to ask any more questions. "It's nothing.. it's just.. er.. " She noticed her science book in her locker. "I'm just worried about the science project we turned in. I think I got it all wrong." She ignored the look Emily shot her.

Max couldn't shake the feeling that she was lying to him. He, like everyone who knew Casey McDonald, knew that she could never lie. "Okay," he stated deciding to drop it. He could always find out later. "Well, I better get to class. But I'll meet you after school then?"

"Yup." Casey nodded. He kissed her once more on the cheek. "Bye, Case. See ya, Em." He nodded at Emily and made his way down the hall, occasionally stopping to address some of his friends.

Emily waited till Max was out of earshot before she rounded on her best friend. "What gives? We don't have a science project. We finished them all a month ago."

Casey shut her locker and started walking towards their next class. Emily knew she was choosing to ignore the question, but decided to be persistent. Falling into step beside Casey, she asked the question they both knew she wanted an answer to. "Why did you lie to Max?"

"I don't know." Casey said truthfully.

"What do you mean? He just asked why you were distracted, you didn't have to lie about that. You could have just said what you were thinking about..." Emily stopped abruptly as realization hit, causing Casey to start panicking again. Could Emily have guessed what was on her mind?

"What  _were_ you thinking about Case?"

"Nothing." Casey turned around and started walking down the hall again, hoping that Emily would drop it. But, she didn't.

"You wouldn't be lying like this unless you were thinking about something that you shouldn't be thinking about," Emily said while following Casey.

"I wasn't thinking about anything Em." Casey's voice was practically pleading now. Why couldn't her best friend just drop it?

"Case, you tell me everything, don't you? Why wont you just tell me what you were thinking about? It cant be  _that_ bad..." Casey had suddenly stopped as something caught her eye over Emily's shoulder. Emily turned, curious to see what her friend was looking at. On the opposite side of the hall, leaning against his locker casually, stood Derek Venturi surrounded by the normal 'I heart Derek' club. What caught Emily's attention was the fact that he and Casey seemed to be in a staring match, while ignoring all other activity around them. Derek's gaze was more of a glare, while Casey looked slightly panicked. Emily would be lying if she said she understood the ever changing dynamics of their relationship, but now, one thing seemed remarkably clear. Derek was mad, and Casey probably thought it was her fault.

"Case!" Emily moved her hand in front of her friends' face and successfully received her attention.

"Yeah?" Startled, Casey replied.

"What's up with you and Derek?" Emily had a feeling that he was the reason her friend was so distracted today.

Casey looked at her confused. "What makes you think that any thing's up?"

"Um... Case, I'm not  _that_  dumb okay? Why was he glaring at you like that?"

Casey sighed, which Emily took as a good sign. It meant that Casey was giving up the facade. "Derek and I had a fight this morning."

"Don't you guys like, fight all the time?" Emily asked confused.

"This time was.. different." She mumbled.

"How come?"

"He.. We.. Um.. I don't know, it was just different."

"Why?" Emily felt like she was repeating herself. How hard was it to answer such a simple question?

Casey started walking again, Emily following her lead. "It's just, you know Derek. When he fights with me, he's always cocky and Derek-like, and somehow it's all a joke to him. But today.. "

"What?" Emily asked, now feeling slightly impatient.

"He was mad, Em. I mean really, really, mad. I have never seen him like that. It was as if he wanted to hurt me." She finished in a whisper.

"Hurt you?" Emily said in a curious tone. They had just entered the classroom, causing her to speak more softly so as not to be overheard. Taking her seat, she looked at Casey. "I find that hard to believe Case. Maybe he just had a bad day."

Casey fought the urge to roll her eyes at her best friend's constant attempts to put Derek on a pedestal. "You weren't there Em, you didn't hear him."

"That's true. But then, why didn't you just tell Max? Why did you lie to him about a science project?"

Casey had been asking herself that same question. "I don't know. I guess, remembering Derek, meant remembering the party this Friday. And I still haven't told Max about that yet." She knew that was a half truth.

Emily nodded, finally understanding some of Casey's logic. Before she could ask any more questions, the teacher walked in to begin their lesson. She'll have to find out the exact details of the fight later.

\--

Derek was distracted. But then, in all honesty, that wasn't something new when it came to his education. He was sitting at the back of his History class, in his usual seat as he stared at the one girl who had been occupying his mind for the past few days. He couldn't put his finger on it. Something had changed between them, and if the moment they shared last night wasn't an indication, the fight they had this morning sure was. It was as if there was no more playfulness between them. He had been harsh and unreasonable. She had retaliated with statements just as hurtful, all the while with a look of hurt in her eyes. And he didn't know why, but he had felt a twisted sense of

content when he saw pain flash in her eyes.

He was frustrated with this situation. Pranking Casey used to be the highlight of his day. But since their relationship changed, it was an effort to stay in the same room with her and act civil. He was mad at her, and mad at himself. It would have been so much more helpful if he could just figure out why.

The class ended, signaling the end of another 'riveting' school day. Usually, Derek stayed back, to hang out with some of his friends while Casey was driven home by Emily. But as he watched his step-sister gather her belongings and walk towards the exit, Emily in tow, he felt another impulse, one that he knew he should ignore, but didn't. Nodding goodbye to those around him, he headed towards the duo, not really sure what he was trying to accomplish by his next act.

Derek managed to catch up to them just as they were a few steps away from Emily's car. "Don't worry about today, Em. I can take Casey," he said, in what he hoped was a nonchalant tone as he grabbed his step-sister's arm.

He saw Casey shoot Emily a pleading look as she tried to break away from his grip, but Derek, determined not to let her go, held on tighter. "Um.. actually, I don't mind. After all, we do live close by to each other." Emily was such a good friend.

"Really Emily, it's fine. We'll see you tomorrow," Derek stated, the finality evident in his tone. Before Emily could protest further, he led Casey towards the Prince. He was opening the passenger side door when Casey seemed to lose her mute self. He was wondering why she was so silent.

"What is wrong with you? Emily said she could drop me." She practically yelled, pulling away from his grasp.

"Yeah, well.. I'm taking you home, so get in the car." His voice was stern as he held open the door for her.

She eyed him warily. "What do you want Derek? Is this some kind of mind trick you're playing on me? I'm not in the mood for games right now."

He ignored her questions. "Get in Casey."

He knew his response would anger her, and he was right. "If you think, that I'm just going to be one of your minions and jump when you say jump, you're mistaken Venturi." She yelled back at him. "You cant rule my life, and i'd be damned if you would even  _think_ about trying."

Derek's features darkened and his jaw tightened as he moved towards Casey, who instantly panicked at his tense stance and took a few steps back out of fear. She stopped when she felt the cold metal of the car against her back. Derek towered over her, his anger evident in every muscle of his body. "Get. In. The. Car." His words sounded low and sinister even to his own ears as he could barely say the speak through clenched teeth. Only Casey could make him this freaking mad.

He could see the fear in her eyes, but when she spoke, her words were cold and calm. "Fine. Just this once, I'll do what you want." She waited until he stepped away from her to enter the car, slamming the door shut.

They were both silent and tense throughout the ride home. Derek expected Casey to storm out of the car as soon as they reached home, but surprising him again, she removed her seat belt, and turned towards him, the look of anger still on her face. " _What_  is your deal? Is it  _so_  hard to leave me alone when I want you to?"

Her anger just succeeded in increasing his. Repeating her previous movement, he faced her, prepared for a battle he knew they had to finish. "What is  _my_  deal?" he yelled back. "My deal is that you somehow always make  _me_  out to be the bad guy. I wasn't the one who started this thing in the morning Princess, it was you."

"And you just  _had_  to finish it, didn't you? You  _always_ have to be the one to end the arguments."

"If you didn't start it, I didn't have to end it."

"I didn't start anything Derek, you just took what I said out of context."

Derek laughed bitterly. "How else was I supposed to take it?"

Casey scoffed. "It's not like I was lying." She saw his eyes harden. "And besides, I thought the great Derek Venturi is immune to such comments."

"Such comments? That wasn't  _just_  a comment. You meant it."

"It's not like you didn't mean what you said." She shot back.

Where had that twisted sense of content gone? He suddenly felt guilt for what he had said. But he kept his voice hard. "There you go again, turning this around on me."

His voice suddenly turned deadly as he leaned towards her. "You  _really_  don't want to start a war with me Princess."

Casey's breathing became strained. She knew she had to look tough, and keep up the appearance that he wasn't getting to her. Her features sported a look of determination as she leaned towards her step-brother in challenge. "If you think that you're threats would scare me off, you're mistaken Venturi." Her voice mimicked his tone. "Don't think for one second that I would make this easy for you."

The argument was similar to that which they have used before. But this time, it was different. This time, it was serious. There was no joke, no light hearted sibling rivalry. Derek was aware that there was something else between them, something that caused them to hurt the other and as a result, know that person better than themselves. It was Casey who knew how to push his buttons. It was Casey who would know his mood without having to ask. And here he was meeting her glare head on with his own.

They both stared at each other patiently, neither willing to make the first move.

It was the sound of the side door opening that caused them to break eye contact. Marti waved at them both while bounding into the garage and heading towards Derek.

"Hey Smarti!" Derek opened the car door in time for his younger sister to jump into his arms.

"Hey Smerek! Hi Casey!" He carefully got out of the car and closed the door heading towards the kitchen with Casey behind him. "How come you guys were there for so long? You were supposed to come in ages ago."

Derek's gaze fell on Casey and they shared a silent moment of understanding before her face broke out into a grin and she turned towards Marti. "Why wont you ask your big brother? He was the one who was making a fuss to come inside."

Marti looked up at him. "Why didn't you want to come inside?"

Derek looked at his sister in mock horror. "Smarti! How could you? You really think I didn't want to come home as soon as possible to see my favourite sister?" He narrowed his eyes at her. "You know what this means.."

Marti giggled, still in his arms. "What?" She looked at him innocently.

"You need to be... PUNISHED!" he growled, twirling her around while simultaneously tickling her. Hearing her giggles made him feel so much more lighter. He could see Casey laughing at their little ritual with affection. Marti was the only one they never wanted to fight in front of.

"Casey.. Help!" Marti giggled, while still holding onto Derek. He could hear her laugh in response. "I don't know Marti. I think you're on your own for this one."

Derek growled and tickled his sister even more. "You're asking help? From Casey? Really Smarti! I'm disappointed in you."

"Alright Smerek," she cried out mid-giggle. "I'm sorry."

"What?" Derek teased. "What was that Smarti?"

Marti giggled. "I'm sorry I asked Casey to help."

"That's my girl." He smirked, at least one member of the family still gives in to him.

Derek finally put Marti, who was still giggling, on the kitchen counter, tired from the playful activity. He saw her turn towards Casey. "Can you make me a sandwich?"

"Sure Marti. But a quick one okay? I have to go get ready soon," she said as she started moving about the kitchen, collecting the ingredients needed.

"Where are you going?" Marti asked as she started pulling at her brother's leather jacket playfully, causing him to chuckle lightly.

Casey was now at the counter with her step siblings, preparing Marti's meal. "Max and I are meeting for lunch today." Derek visibly stiffened. Casey didn't notice as she was concentrating on the task at hand, but Marti did.

"What's wrong Smerek?" She looked at him, those big brown eyes full of curiosity. He noticed that the question caused Casey to look at him too. Ignoring her glance, he looked at his sister. "Nothing Smarti." He smirked, hoping she bought the lie. The uneasy feeling that he associated with Casey was growing in him. He didn't understand why knowing that she was going out with Max, gave him an urge to call up any girl to distract him from thoughts he didn't really want to think about.

"Here you go." Casey placed the sandwich in front of Marti.

Before his sister could take a bite out of it, he lifted her into his arms, and grabbed the plate with his free hand. "How about we go watch some tv, huh?"

She nodded, giving him the most adorable look. "Only if I get to sit in  _your_  chair."

Derek chuckled. "I'll think about it." He made his way to the living room leaving Casey behind. Hopefully, his sister will be a sufficient distraction from those unwanted thoughts, rather than some girl.

\--

"So, how is everything?" Max asked her. She knew it was just a question to fill the silent void that seemed to have engulfed them.

Casey looked around at the quaint restaurant he had chosen to 'catch up' with each other. It would have been such a romantic date if it weren't for the awkwardness between them. "Every thing's been good Max." She smiled at him. "It's not like we haven't been talking right?"

"Yeah." Max nodded. He suddenly looked uncomfortable, as if he was preparing to broach an unwanted subject. "Listen Case, have you noticed how we don't... Um... Talk anymore? I mean,  _really_  talk."

She began to panic, not liking where he was going with this. "Um... Yeah... I guess..."

"I thought so." He looked at her. "So, you also feel like something's different?"

She nodded, not wanting to help him along.

"I mean, I get it. When you're busy, I'm free, and when I'm busy, you're free. Not to mention, we haven't really stayed in a room, alone, just the two of us for sometime now." His hint was hard to miss. Casey couldn't look at him. Why can't he just do it quick, like ripping off a band-aid?

Max took a deep breath. "I think you should come spend the summer with me."

"What?" The shock was evident in her tone.

"My parents were thinking about going to the summer lake house, and they invited you along. What do you think?"

Casey was still confused. "I thought you were going to break up with me."

"You did? I know that we have been having a rough patch lately, but you know I want to work this out, right?"

Casey smiled. "Yeah." This was why she liked Max so much, unlike most guys her age, he actually acted like an adult. "I don't know what my parents would say though. My mother would be a wreck if I miss anymore time with her."

"At least come for a few weeks. It'll be fun."

Casey liked that idea. "Yeah, I think I will. I think I need sometime away from the drama in my life." She said, remembering the incidents between her and her step-brother. "Let me just try to convince my mom first."

"Great." Max grinned. "I'm sure she'll say yes." And for the first time in weeks, he  _really_ kissed her.

\--

"You're kidding! Case, that's awesome!" Emily squealed as she bounced on her bed. "Why aren't you excited about this?"

"I don't know Em. It was just such a surprise." Casey sighed as she played with one of Emily's stuffed animals her bed was decorated with.

Emily shook her head. "I will  _never_  understand you. You're boyfriend, who is by the way a major hunk, just invited you to spend the summer with him  _and_  his family. If that doesn't spell commitment, I don't know what does."

Casey leaned back against the head board. "Maybe, I don't want that type of commitment."

Emily raised her eyebrow at her. "You're joking right? Didn't you already plan your wedding to him? I distinctly remember you deciding on the designs for the bridesmaid dresses."

"I know! I know!" Casey yelled in frustration. "I don't know what's gotten into me. Here is this great guy, who's giving me everything I could possibly want. I  _know_ I should be grateful, but I cant help but feel that this is not what I want."

"So then, what  _do_ you want?"

"I don't know." Casey whispered. How could she tell Emily, or anyone for that matter, that she couldn't help but wonder what Derek would think of Max's offer. For some reason, his opinion mattered to her. But she could never ask him, not when they were constantly attacking each other. She smacked herself mentally, knowing that she wouldn't have asked his opinion even if they weren't in their current state.

Emily was silently watching her friend. Deciding to act on her hunch, she asked the question that she suspected might give an insight as to her confusing behaviour. "So, how's the Derek situation now?"

Casey's head snapped into attention at the mention of her step-brother. "It's fine," she whispered, looking down at the comforter as if studying a work of art.

This reaction confirmed Emily's suspicions. "You guys are still fighting?" Casey nodded, avoiding her friend's penetrating gaze.

Emily sighed. It was a rare occasion when Casey didn't feel like talking about, or even complaining about anything, especially if the subject was Derek Venturi. "Case, what's wrong? You know you can tell me right?"

Casey finally looked at her. "I know Em, it's just that.. things are so confusing right now."

Finally, they were getting somewhere. "Maybe it will help if you talk about it out loud. You know, like verbal therapy or something."

"Maybe you're right." Casey nodded. "It's just that, things with Derek and I have become kind of.. tense." She sighed. "I don't know. There's something about the way he looks at me. It's like he's angry at me, but I don't know why. I haven't done anything to him. Besides, he's  _always_  the one who initiates the arguments. I don't know what he wants from me." She whispered, as if that last thought saddened her.

Emily nodded, taking on the 'supportive best friend' role. "Maybe you should talk to him."

Casey laughed bitterly. "I can't. Every time we talk, we end up fighting. And these are fights I  _don't_  want to go through."

"I know, but I also know you. You wont be happy till you get this problem sorted out. At least try to talk to him."

Casey smiled at her friend. "Thanks Em. I think I'll try your advice. No harm done right?" She pulled Emily into a hug. "Where would I be without you?"

Emily laughed returning the hug. "Well, you would still be fashionably challenged." Causing Casey to giggle.

\--

Casey squared her shoulders and took a deep breath to calm her nerves. She couldn't believe she was taking Em's advice, but she had to, for her own sanity. She opened the door quickly and stepped inside, closing the door so as not to let the whole house hear the inevitable shouting match she and her step-brother would end up having. He looked up at her from his computer, his face showing his irritation.

"What do you want Space Case?" He looked back at the monitor, obviously intending to ignore her for as long as possible.

"I think we should talk." She was fighting the urge to reply with just as much venom in her tone.

"There's nothing to talk about." He replied flippantly.

She decided to just jump into the issue. "Why are you mad at me?"

He faced her then, surprised by her question. "I'm not mad."

Casey rolled her eyes. "That would have been so much more convincing if you didn't sound mad when you said it."

"Pretending to hear things that aren't there. Don't you think that's a bad habit?"

"I don't need to pretend. I know it's there. Why are you mad at me?" She repeated, sensing that they were straying from the topic at hand.

"I told you, I'm not mad. Now be nice, and get out." He turned his attention back to the monitor. But Casey didn't move. She stood there patiently, determined to finish this conversation.

Derek started to feel irritated at his step-sister's lack of initiative to follow his orders. He stood up. "Casey, get out, or I'll physically remove you."

But she stood her ground. "I'm not leaving till you answer my question."

He advanced towards her, hoping to scare her into submission. "Get out."

"No." She ignored the need to run as her nervousness seemed to multiply ten fold.

Derek felt like giving up. he was obviously not going to get his way with his usual scare tactic. "God, Woman!" He grabbed her shoulders shaking her slightly. "Do you want me to lose my self control?" he asked, frustrated.

Casey stumbled as he let her go. She had never seen him like this before. "Self control for what?" She was afraid of the answer.

But, Derek didn't reply, instead he moved towards the door, and yanked it open. "Just get out."

Casey gave into her fear, although her exterior was cool and calm. "Fine." Just as she was about to exit the room, she turned to him. "We  _will_ finish this later." She threatened.

"Can't wait," Derek replied bitterly before slamming the door in her face.

As she stomped into her own room, slamming the door shut in frustration she couldn't help but wonder.  _Self control for what??_


	5. Chapter 5

Casey looked over the kitchen counter at her mother, hoping that her 'angelic look of innocence' would sway her. "Please mom?"

Nora shook her head. "No, Case. You know very well that you have only a few weeks left. How can I let you spend that time with strangers?"

"But they're  _not_ strangers. I've met them before."

"That's not the point. You'll be going off to college soon. You'll be on your own. And, don't get me wrong, I trust you. It's just that, I want to have my special family time." She walked towards her daughter, an apologetic look on her face. "I know I'm being selfish, but could you please do this for me?"

Casey wanted to do as her mother asked, but she didn't think she could survive without a break from all things Derek. She needed this."Okay then, how about a compromise? How about I spend one week with them? That's not too bad, is it?" she pleaded.

Her mother gave her a curious look. "You really want to go don't you?"

Casey nodded. "Max and I have a lot of things to work on."

Nora leaned against the sink, fixing her daughter with a penetrating gaze. "So this is  _just_  about Max? It has nothing to do with getting away from a certain step-brother?"

Casey blushed. She never understood how her mother could read her so well. Nora took her daughter's silence as an affirmative. She sighed. "Casey, I know you and Derek have your problems, but you will be leaving soon, and probably never see him again unless for family gatherings. You don't need to get away from him right away, do you? Besides, don't you want to work this out before you leave? Maybe, you two could be friends one day."

Casey scoffed at her mother's positivity. "Mom, I told you, Derek and I will probably  _never_ get along." She looked at her mother. "I really, really want to go for this. Please?" But her mother continued to look doubtful. "At least think about it."

Nora sighed, defeated. "Fine. I'll think about it." She saw her daughter smile. "But there's still a chance that I might say no."

Casey nodded. "I know." She walked towards her mother and enveloped her in a hug. "Thanks mom."

"No problem kiddo." She pulled away and gestured upstairs. "Now go get ready for school."

\--------------------

"Would you like to explain to me what happened out there Venturi?" Coach Smithson's booming voice practically made the glass shatter in his tiny office.

"I wish I could Sir." Derek stated, placing as much remorse as possible into his tone.

"We have a game this Friday. We cannot afford to have players who attack our own team members. You WILL get your act together by Friday! Understood?"

Derek nodded. "Yes, Sir!"

"Leave! Before I change my mind and strip your title as Captain."

"Yes, Sir." Derek hastened out of there before his hockey coach did as he threatened. The man was known for being impulsive and stubborn, so he didn't really want to take a chance.

As he walked into the locker room to change, he noticed that most, if not all of his team mates had left. It was Sam who was patiently waiting next to Derek's locker. Derek took a deep breath. Great! Now he'll have to explain his actions, at least Sam would understand.

"Hey D! " Sam took a step back to allow sufficient room for Derek to remove his gear. Derek nodded, waiting for his friend's inevitable question. Sam leaned against the locker, in an attempt to sound casual."So, you going to tell me what happened?"

Derek slammed his helmet against the locker in anger at the memory of the incident. He turned to face his best friend. "Why didn't you tell me it was Watson?" He noticed how Sam's eyes took on a look of understanding. So, he  _did_ know.

Sam sighed. He knew he was caught. "What happened?"

"That son of a bitch was talking about her. Like she was.. " He couldn't find the right word. He didn't want to use the word 'skank' or 'slut' in the same sentence that was about Casey. Giving up on that statement, he angrily removed his gear item by item slamming them into the locker. "I should have  _kicked_  his ass."

"You  _did_ kick his ass."

"Well, I should have kicked it harder. He should not be able to walk or play hockey for the rest of his life." He sneered.

"Dude, I thought you were letting this go. We know Casey, remember? Do you really think she'll fall for a guy like Winston? Anyways, coach didn't bench you for the game did he?" Sam made an attempt to change the conversation, aware that continuing this line of thought was only succeeding in making his best friend become pissed off by the second.

Derek shot him a look which stated that he knew what Sam was doing, but still took the bait. "Nah, he can't afford to."

Sam rolled his eyes. It was only Derek who would still be cocky after today's drama. "Well then, I'll catch ya tomorrow then." Just as he was about to leave, he stopped turning towards his friend. "You Okay right?"

Derek chuckled. "Yeah man. I'm fine."

"Cool." He just hoped that his best friend could control his anger in the future.

\---------------------

Derek squinted at his reflection in the bathroom mirror, examining the bruises on his torso and back. Man! That guy could punch. But then, so could he. He smirked remembering how he had gotten the upper hand. He moved slightly to retrieve his shirt and winced as the pain shot through his body. He should really get used to this by now. His only worry was the split lip and his blackening eye. It will be very hard to pass those injuries off as hockey related. Did the guy  _have_ to punch him in the face? His dad had always been testy about fighting, but after that last episode with the football players, and the resulting suspension, he was even more annoyed. His father had stated in no uncertain terms that if Derek got into another fight, he would be grounded. He sighed, examining the injuries on his face as his shirt lay forgotten on the floor. He wished there was a way to cover these. Why was it that whenever is father asked him to do something it was usually followed by a threat of being grounded?

A gasp near the bathroom door drew his attention. Casey stood there looking at him with a horrified expression on her face, which quickly turned to frustration. " _What_ did you do this time?"

Derek scowled at her. "None of your business." He made a move to grab his shirt, but stilled when the pain struck. He mentally slapped himself for showing how much he was hurting.

Casey walked forward and picked up the shirt handing it to him. "Here," she whispered. Her gaze was soft towards him, it was a look that he had rarely experienced from her.

"Thanks." He mumbled. He didn't really want to put on his shirt in front of her because he knew that it would be slow and painful. But he'd rather take that option, considering that if he walked to his room bare chested, and Nora saw him, there would be hell to pay.

Taking a step away from Casey and hoping against hope that she would let him be, he placed his right arm through one sleeve. He had opted to use a button down shirt, knowing that a t-shirt would be even more painful to wear. He winced in pain as he tried to bring his left arm behind him to put it in the other sleeve. Casey moved closer to him then and silently helped him as she gently moved his arm. Derek would have protested if the help wasn't needed. He let out a sigh of relief when the ordeal was over. But before he could do anything, she stepped in front of him, and steadily began buttoning up his shirt from the bottom up. He watched her, fascinated by her movements. He couldn't help but notice how her fingers slightly brushed against him as she silently went about her task. Her movements slowed while she worked her way up as if she was conscious of his intense gaze on her. When she reached the third button from the top, her hands stilled and she slowly looked up at him. His heart beat, which had gradually increased, seemed to rush painfully as her gaze met his. He couldn't breath. He was acutely aware that her hands were pressed firmly on his chest and that she was so close that if he tilted his head just a fraction..

His thoughts were stopped abruptly when he felt her hands lightly go over his shoulders as she leaned into him. "Your collar." She whispered against his ear. Her warm breath on his neck caused his eyes to close involuntarily as he felt her fingers around his neck, slowly fixing his collar. As if by it's own will, his arms slowly encircled her waist, holding her to him. He leaned into her, taking in her scent as he felt her fingers gently run through the hair at the nape of his neck. How did this happen? How did Derek Venturi, who never hugged anyone, end up holding on to his step-sister as if his life depended on it? The rational part of his brain was screaming that this was wrong. This was Casey. They were not step-siblings who randomly share hugs or intimate moments like this. This was NOT normal. But he didn't listen. She wasn't protesting to these turn of events, so how could he? He felt her hands lightly go over his shoulders and back while her head rested on him. This felt so surreal. He really didn't know how they were going to go back to the way they were.

"Derek! Casey! Dinner!" Edwin's scream was irrefutable. Letting go, they slowly stepped back. It was awkward. They stood silently avoiding each others' gaze.

"So...this is not awkward at all," Derek mumbled in an attempt to lighten the situation.

Casey laughed."Yeah. Not at all." He smiled in response. "What are you going to tell George?"

Derek's smile faltered as she reminded him of his injuries. He shrugged. "I'll think of something."

Casey nodded in understanding. He was after all the Lord of the lies. But she did wonder if he could come up with a suffient story that would convince George that he wasn't in a fight. "I guess we better go then."

"Yeah.. um.. ladies first?" He smirked at her gesturing grandly towards the door. Casey shook her head, amused as she exited the bathroom, Derek in tow.

\-------------------

"Derek! Please tell me that you didn't get that black eye from a fight." George looked sternly at his eldest son as he took his seat at the dinner table. He was hoping that Derek could tell him a creatively believable story that would explain his injuries so that he need not ground him. He always believed in the philosophy 'boys will be boys', but his wife apparently, did not.

"Yeah... Well... You see, dad... It's like this..."

Casey couldn't take anymore of this. "Actually George, Derek  _did_  get into a fight." She noticed how her mother glared at George, who in turn glared at Derek. Derek gave his father a sheepish look before glaring at her. Lizzie, Edwin and Marti quietly watched the proceedings with as much interest as watching a re-run of an episode on tv. This type of family dynamic was not usual in the McDonald-Venturi household.

Casey ignored the glares and looked at her step-father. "He was sticking up for me." At this, the mood of the whole table changed as they all looked at her with curiosity, including Derek, who tried to give off the impression that he knew what she was talking about. "This jerk of a guy has been bothering me lately." She continued looking between her mother and George for added effect. "Today, he thought it would be  _so_ funny if he tripped me. And there I was sprawled on the floor with everyone laughing at me. I mean, no one even offered to help me up." She looked towards Derek. "Well, that's when Derek showed up. He saw this jerk laugh at me, and he asked him to stop it. But the guy got mad and shoved him, then Derek shoved him back, and the next thing we know, they were punching each other." She saw her family look incredulously towards her step-brother. No one would have ever thought Derek capable of sticking up for Casey. "So, as much as I would hate to admit it. He was there for me." She finished while sharing a grateful smile with Derek.

The table was silent for sometime till George spoke. "What's this kid's name?"

"Matt Watson," Derek replied without hesitation.

George and Nora looked at each other. Should they reprimand Derek's behaviour or encourage it? For now, Nora decided it was best to go with option number three, neither. "Well then, I guess your father and I will have to discuss your punishment later then."

Derek smiled. He knew what that meant. That was parent code for 'we-are-not-able-to-punish-you, but-we-want-to-make-you-sweat'. He shot a grateful glance at Casey who smiled back at him. Who knew his step-sister would ever lie for him?

\----------------

Casey was washing the dishes as a way of therapy. Her mind was swimming with thoughts, thoughts that centered around her step-brother. What had happened just barely an hour ago? What was she thinking? He was a jerk to her, and she ended up helping him by lying to her mother. She didn't really expect them to believe her, but they did. But that hug! That wasn't just a hug! It somehow had gotten rid of the tension between them, as they have gone back to their jovial bickering. But she couldn't help but feel that there was something else there as well, and wonder if Derek felt it too.Things have been happening between them recently, the looks, the glares, the fights. And remembering the fight last night, she couldn't shake the question of what Derek needed self control for. She would have thought bodily harm towards her if his eyes didn't look at her  _that_ way. Though what way, she still wasn't sure. Maybe if she wrote down what she actually felt, it might help her to understand what happened. However, first she needed to sleep on it. A clear mind would help immensely.

"You're getting good," Derek said, interrupting her thoughts as he leaned against the counter next to her.

Casey looked up at him in confusion. "Good at what?"

Derek smirked. "Lying. Who would have thought that the holy than thou Casey McDonald would actually have no remorse whatsoever in lying. And to parents mind you."

"I have my moments." She smirked back at him. They looked at each other silently for a moment before she went back to her task.

"Um... Thanks by the way," Derek mumbled.

Casey smiled at his embarrassment. "I'm sorry. What did you say?"

He rolled his eyes. "Don't make me repeat it."

Casey smirked, ready for the challenge. "It looks like you'll have to. After all, I didn't hear you the first time."

"Sure you didn't," he said sarcastically. " I'm pretty sure you heard what I said."

"Nope I didn't." She shook her head. "Wait. Did you tell me that you were going to lend me your stereo? Or, did you tell me that you will never prank me again?"

"Ha ha... very hilarious Case. But no, I am not giving you my stereo, and I will only stop pranking you the day I die."

"Hm... It's a good thing that that day is coming soon then," Casey said, drying her hands.

"And what makes you think that?" Derek asked crossing his arms over his chest.

Casey shrugged. "I'm not going to give away my secrets Derek. How much of fun would it be if I told you how I was going to get back at you? And yes, death is definitely my first choice." She smiled sweetly at him.

Before he could answer, Nora entered the kitchen. "Well, isn't this nice? The two teenagers in the house  _actually_  getting along."

Derek snorted. "You call  _this_  getting along? Space Case and I will get along the day she becomes dumb."

Casey glared at Derek. "Actually, I think it'll be the day that Derek learns some manners."

"Towards you? Never."

"That's enough." Nora interrupted. "I'm sorry I mentioned the horrible thought of you two actually getting along. Happy?"

"That's all we wanted Nora." Derek smirked.

Nora smiled at her step-son before facing Casey. "Anyway, the reason I came to find you is because I made my decision."

Casey's face fell at the mention of the trip. "Mom, how about we talk about this later?" She didn't know why, but she didn't want her mother telling her decision in front of Derek.

Nora looked at her daughter questioningly. "Sure Casey. We can talk about this later."

"Thanks mom. I'm just feeling tired right now. I think I better go to sleep. School tomorrow. Um... Good night!" She saw Derek give her a confused look as she headed towards the stairs. She had a lot of thinking to do.

\-------------------

Casey was trying to sleep. 'Trying' being the operative word. But a certain step-brother who had been confusing her lately was blasting his music in the next room. Why couldn't he be a classical music lover? Then, she wouldn't have felt like complaining if he was listening to Bach or Beethoven. At times like this, she cursed being a light sleeper. Lizzie had always been able to sleep through train wrecks and Marti, being brought up in this household was used to sleeping with loud noises around her. Her mom and George were sleeping soundly in the basement, and Edwin could barely hear anything from his room in the attic. Lucky them, Casey thought bitterly. Cursing since it was one in the morning and it was a school night, she threw away her comforter and stormed to Derek's room.

"DE-REK!" She slammed her fist against the door. "Turn off that music!" Was she mistaken, or did he just increase the volume? She tried his door nob, and smiled evilly, it was unlocked.

"Hey!" Derek protested as Casey walked in and pulled the plug of his stereo. "What's your problem?"

Casey turned around to see her step-brother in his night wear as he sat up on his bed. " _My_ problem? What's  _your_  problem? It's one in the morning, and we have school tomorrow. I need my sleep."

He looked at her, a blank expression on his face. "So?"

Casey felt herself getting angry. "So, use your head phones," she stated between clenched teeth. "You know very well that I can hear through this wall when you play your 'music'."

Derek got off the bed and walked towards her. "I'm sorry, but I think you've mistaken me for someone who  _actually_  cared."

"Why do you have to make things so difficult?" she yelled. She was grumpy and sleep deprived.

"Why do you have to always stop me from having fun?"

"Your 'fun' is always at the expense of others."

"And by 'others', you mean you."

"So what if I do? You try to ruin my life every chance you get, and you call it fun."

"That's because it is! And it's not like you're not having you're own 'fun' Princess." He sneered.

"What  _are_  you talking about?"

"Nora told me about your week long tryst with Maxy. Tell me something, how  _did_  he get you to put out?" The air crackled as she slapped him. She didn't realize that she had done it until her hand made contact with his left cheek and she felt the burn from the pain. He slowly turned his head towards her, his eyes deadly. Casey panicked, as various scenarios of her possible demise by Derek flashed before her eyes."You shouldn't have done that." He whispered as he advanced towards her, his body rigid with rage. She took a few steps back as she looked over his shoulder trying to assess the closest possible way to make her exit with as little pain as possible.

"Derek..." She wanted to reason with him. She just wished her voice wouldn't shake so much. "You don't need to do this."

Derek smirked, his smile not reaching his eyes. "Do what?"

"Derek.." She pleaded since now, her back was against the wall and Derek was blocking her escape route.

He kept moving towards her until he was practically leaning against her, pinning her to the wall with his body. He placed both arms on either side of her, determined not to let her get away. "What?" He was mocking her.

"Can you please move?" Casey brought her hands up and gently pushed against his chest. She knew his bruises would still hurt and a part of her didn't want to cause him anymore pain. Besides, even with bruises, Derek was still stronger than her. She really wanted him off her. Besides the obvious reason that he was angry and she feared what he would do in wake of that anger, she was also disturbingly aware of every inch of his body that touched hers. Her mind was going a mile a minute thinking that Derek was either going to kill her or kiss her, though the first seemed more plausible.

"No." He sneered against her. His eyes seemed to be penetrating hers.

Casey was panicking. She pushed even harder against his chest and saw him wince, instinctively, she lightened her grasp on him. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

He looked at her surprised. "For who?" he asked bitterly. "For Max or me?"

"What?" Shock was evident in her tone.

"You know what? Don't answer that," he muttered before leaning into her. "I guess choosing one or the other can be really taxing," he whispered as he gently brushed his lips lightly against the base of her ear. He couldn't help the smirk that graced his face when he felt her shiver under him. He closed his eyes as he continued to move against her, bringing her body even closer to his. He gently kissed her neck again and again, relishing in the texture of her skin and the smell of her hair. She had stopped pushing him away now, her hands were lightly resting on his chest while her breathing had become laboured. He knew he was teasing her. But he wanted her to want him as much as he wanted her, and if that meant holding off his own needs for now, he would do just that.

Casey couldn't think. It was hard to believe that her step-brother was leaning against her so intimately, that he was gently nipping at her neck, causing a need in her that she never knew existed. She needed to feel his lips on hers. She needed his body to fit into hers. As if by their own volition, her hand went to the nape of his neck and gently pulled his head away. They looked at each other, their faces barely a few centimetres apart, their breathing ragged. It was as if controlling the desire they felt for each other was a physical effort.

Without a warning, Derek crushed his lips against hers, resulting in Casey involuntarily releasing a moan. There was no more gentleness as he roughly pushed her against the wall, and she pulled at him, wanting to feel him against every inch of her body. The kiss deepened, causing more moans to escape especially when she felt his hands feel her bare skin under her shirt. They were a tangle of limbs, their hands touching, grasping, tugging every inch of exposed skin as if they couldn't get close enough. Derek ignored the pain that was shooting through his body by concentrating on the pleasure Casey's hands were invoking within him. Groaning against her skin, he lifted her so that her legs easily wrapped around his waist and carried her to his bed, all the while his lips and hands never leaving her.

They fell on the bed, and Casey instinctively spread her legs welcoming the feeling of Derek between her thighs as he landed on top of her. He latched onto her throat as his hands began fondling the rounded body beneath her shirt. Her body arched in response, causing Derek to harden against her. Their moans increased and their actions sped up as their tongues duelled. Casey responded just as fervently to Derek, causing him to groan against her by grinding her hips against his. "Casey," he muttered, unable to believe that he was really kissing her, touching her.

At the sound of her name, Casey's mind was suddenly turned on as if by a switch. She was suddenly aware of everything. Derek! Step-brother! Kissing! Bed! Max! Fighting her body's desire to keep doing what they were doing, she pushed him slightly away from her. Derek, noticing her change in behaviour looked down at her, confusion evident on his face. They looked at each other silently, as if finally comprehending what they were doing. He moved off of her, knowing that they weren't going to be repeating this activity anytime soon.

"Um... I gotta go." Casey whispered in an effort to stop her voice from shaking. She stood up off the bed, and sped out of the room, avoiding his gaze. She didn't see the pain that flashed across his eyes at her departure, or Derek grabbing the pillow they had been making out on, and chucking it angrily at the wall.

Casey opened her bedroom door and quickly stepped inside. She was shaking. Wrapping her arms around her in an effort to calm down, she sat on the floor. Breath Casey! Just breath! She didn't realize that she was crying until she tasted her tears. Wiping her cheeks violently, she wondered what had just happened. It was as if she was watching everything that occurred happen to someone else. She had kissed Derek! And it wasn't an innocent kiss either. She had wanted it. As if betraying her, her body was still hot and tingled from where he had touched her. And that was practically everywhere, she remembered blushing slightly. And Max! She had cheated on Max! She let out a choked sob then. What sort of a horrible person would cheat on someone so sweet and understanding? She climbed onto her bed, and grabbed her pillow, hugging it in the hopes that it would comfort her. She buried her face as she let her sobs painfully choke out. How was she going to face  _anyone_ in the morning?


	6. Chapter 6

Casey stared at her reflection in her bedroom mirror. Her hair was a mess, her eyes puffy and she didn't look like she had slept all night. Sighing, she grabbed her brush and make up, prepared to fix her appearance. She needed to look as if nothing had happened last night, or if it did, like she was not affected by it. Even though, her mind was in turmoil just thinking about it. How could she have let this happen? She had always believed in the right and wrong of the universe, the white and black. She had no idea that the ever popularly quoted 'gray area' actually existed. She could never understand how people could cheat, never believed them when they said that they didn't mean to, and today, she was one of them. Why did she have to learn the existence of 'losing self control' this way? Couldn't she have read about it as a scientific finding?

Relatively satisfied with her appearance, she stood up, smoothing her skirt and top. She took a deep breath as she looked at herself in the mirror, as if trying to take courage from it. She was going to ignore him. She was going to smile and continue life like she had never even had a step-brother called Derek Venturi. And as for Max, she had some thinking to do. She felt guilty, and she knew her conscience wouldn't allow her to keep silent on what happened. But she didn't want to tell him either. She couldn't bear seeing the pain in his eyes if she told him. Her two mind sets battled each other throughout the night. When she had settled on telling him, the opposition produced new evidence that changed the scale and vice versa.

She took one last breath and headed downstairs, prepared to put operation 'Casey McDonald is as normal as ever' into motion. As she came down, she was greeted by the normal hustle and bustle of the McDonald-Venturi household on a Thursday morning.

"Oh Casey, you're finally here." Nora looked up from giving the younger kids their lunches and looked at her elder daughter. "Derek left with Sam today, so could you take the kids to school? I would do it, but I'm getting late." She hurried around the kitchen picking up her documents. "The keys are on the counter."

Casey stilled when her mother mentioned Derek. "He left with Sam?" He was avoiding her? Why should he need to avoid her? It was she who needed to avoid him.

"Uh huh," Nora stated, not noticing daughter's tone as the children were taking up most of her attention, as well as her husband who would randomly question her on missing items around the house.

"Casey," Nora called about to head to the garage as she noticed her daughter standing still.

Casey looked at her mother startled. "Um.. yeah.. sure mom, I'll take them." She grabbed her backpack, lunch and car keys and followed her family out, wondering why it upset her that Derek was avoiding her.

\--

"Dude! You alright?" Derek absently nodded as he continued to look out at the passing scenery. Sam sent a sidelong glance at his unusually quiet friend, and continued to drive. He knew that they never spoke about feelings or whatever, but they were friends after all. And friends asked what was wrong. "Why aren't you driving the Prince to school?" He looked at Derek, who was still silent. Sam sighed, giving up. It was an understatement to say that he was shocked when Derek asked him to pick him up for school, especially since he loved driving his own car. Which meant, that he was avoiding something. Which was weird in itself. Derek was not one to avoid anything but school work and punishment. He normally had the get-in-your-face attitude. Which meant that what he was avoiding was probably huge.

Sam found a parking space relatively close by to the entrance and shut off the engine. Derek didn't seem to register that the car had stopped. Sam was worried. He hoped that nothing was amiss in the McDonald-Venturi household. "Dude! We're here."

Derek was startled awake from his thoughts. He silently got out of the car and started walking towards the school. Sam jogged behind him and quickly caught up. He stayed silent. Maybe he would talk when he's ready. After knowing Derek for so many years, he knew his patterns. Ultimately everything comes out. He just had to make sure that he is there when it happens, to make sure that his friend didn't do anything stupid.

\--

Casey saw him at lunch. He was sitting in his usual seat with some of the members of his hockey team. Everyone seemed to be in a good mood, laughing and joking while one of them related a story. Everyone that is, except for Derek who looked like he was concentrating on his own thoughts.

"Hey, you ok?" Casey looked at Emily who was sitting across from her.

"Yeah, I'm fine Em." She looked intently at her lunch, hoping that her best friend would get the hint that she didn't want to talk.

"Casey." Emily's voice was stern. "We've been over this. I can read you, remember? Now, would you like to tell me, why you have been avoiding Max, acting totally un-Casey like, and staring at Derek every chance you get?"

Casey's head snapped up at the mention of her step-brother. "I have  _not_  been staring at Derek." Then her tone turned into one of worry. "Have I?"

"Case, could you please tell me what the deal is? You know I don't like it when my friend is not in a happy mood," she finished stating, showing Casey a small smile.

Casey returned it as she subconsciously touched the base of her neck, which was covered by the collar of her jacket. Emily noticed how, throughout the day Casey had touched that same spot on her neck, and what was even more note worthy was the fact that she had not taken her jacket off once since she had entered the school, which she had never done. Just as she decided to ask her friend about this new behavior, Sarah, the president of the debating team walked over to Casey and asked for her chemistry notes which she had missed. As Casey bent down to retrieve the books, Emily had to suppress a gasp as she finally noticed what her best friend was hiding. She waited till Sarah left the table to quickly grab her books and grabbing a confused Casey along with her to the girl's bathroom. Once inside, she closed the door and checked the stalls. Once she was sure that they were the only ones in that room, she rounded on Casey. "Did you meet Max last night?" She asked, knowing the answer already since she and Casey spoke before going to sleep the night before.

"Um... No... Why are we here?"

"If you didn't meet Max last night, then how did you get that hickey on your neck?" Casey touched the spot on her neck again, a look of fear in her eyes. "You didn't have that yesterday." Emily hoped against hope that her best friend, the one person who never does anything remotely innapropriate, let alone wrong, had gotten that hickey from her boyfriend. But the way Casey had been acting, made her think otherwise. After all, she was a keen observer, she knew all the signs after years of documenting the relationships of others.

Casey looked down, avoiding her friend's penetrating gaze. How she wished her make up could sufficiently cover that mark.

"Casey? Is there someone else?" Emily whispered, as if she was afraid of the answer.

Casey stayed silent still not looking at her. Emily looked at her friend dumbfounded. She would have never believed that this could have occurred in a million years. Her curiosity got the better of her. "Who is it?"

Casey wanted to get this all off her chest so badly. She always had people to vent to, her mother, Lizzie, Em and Paul. But this was different. How could she tell either of them this had happened? "I can't talk about this right now, Em," Casey said, her voice sounded broken, as she turned to exit the bathroom.

But Emily was quick, blocking her friend's escape. "Look, I'm not judging you or anything. I just want to know how this happened. Has this been going on for sometime now?" Emily prayed the answer was no. Although she had to admit to herself that this would explain why her best friend's relationship had been on a dry spell lately.

Casey felt the familiar warning signs of tears as she felt her throat close up. "No, it was one time. It was a mistake, and it should have  _never_  happened. I feel horrible for what I did to Max." Casey let out a sob as she covered her face in an attempt to compose herself. "I didn't mean for it to happen. It just did," she choked out. Emily walked towards her and embraced her in a hug. Hearing her best friend admit that she cheated on her boyfriend made her feel like she had entered the twilight zone. Casey held onto her best friend, relieved to have someone to share this with. "How could I do this to him? He's so perfect to me."

"Shh..." Emily rubbed her back gently, hoping to soothe her. "It's alright Case. A lot of people make mistakes. At least you know you made one and you're willing to fix it. Right?"

Casey sobbed into her shoulder. "I know I should tell him. But how can I? He's never going to forgive me Em. I don't think I can handle hurting him like this."

"I know." Emily pulled away. "Listen, I hate to say this, but we have a class to go for. Can you handle it? If you want to go home, I can bring the work over if you want."

Casey shook her head as she wiped her face with the back of her hand. "No, it's ok. I don't want to miss any classes."

Emily smiled encouragingly. "Now  _that's_  the Casey I know." As she walked her friend out of the bathroom, she wondered, what did Derek have to do with all this? But now, they had more important things to discuss before the school day was over, like what Casey had to do regarding Max.

\--

This cannot be happening! Casey mentally reprimanded herself. All through school, that was the very thought that plagued her. Here she was about to meet the boyfriend she didn't deserve. She saw him as he entered the building, his smile firmly fixed. She placed a small smile on her face, dreading the conversation they were about to have. He was probably going to ask her why she had been avoiding him, and she doubted that she would know what to say.

"Hey!" Max kissed her once and settled in the seat opposite her.

"Hey." She didn't really feel like being all chipper right now.

He noticed her downcast expression. "What's wrong? Did your mother say no?" He looked at her worried.

Casey had forgotten about the trip, and she never got around to asking her mother whether or not she gave permission. "Um... No...Not really." She took a deep breath. "Actually, I wanted to talk to you about that. Do you think that it's a good idea for us to continue this?" She asked gesturing between them.

Max looked at her confused. "What do you mean?"

Casey looked down intently as her hands played with the napkin on the table. "I was just thinking that, well.. we'll be going off to college soon, and we will be in a different environment all together. Things change. We wont know for sure whether the change is good or bad. But then again all changes can be good. But that means that we will have to be conscious to that change.. And.. "

"Casey!" Max stated, aware that his girlfriend was babbling, which was never a good sign.

She looked up at him defeated. "I think we should break up."

"You don't mean that." He countered. This break up was a half hearted effort, and he knew it. She must be listening to the logical part of her brain.

Casey nodded sadly. "I do Max. Think about it logically." She leaned forward, prepared to give him all the logical reasons of why they should break up. But he didn't let her continue.

"Listen Case. Do you care about me?" He wouldn't have asked this question unless he was confident of the answer.

"You know I do," she whispered.

"Well, I care about you too. This is the longest relationship that I've ever been in. And I mean  _ever._  And I know that you probably have a thousand and one logical reasons not to stay together. But I want to try to work this out."

"We cant." She shook her head sadly.

"We can."

Casey stood up suddenly, not sure what else she could do to convince him short of telling him the truth. "I'd really like us to be friends Max, please." Max nodded, seeing her so determined. "Thank you." She smiled gratefully at him. "I've got to go now." She gave him an apologetic look and walked out.

Max watched her leave, still confused as to her behavior, but not intending to do what she asked.

\--

Derek was pissed. He stormed into the house, startling his younger step-sibling as he violently slammed the door shut, dropped his bag and raced up the stairs in an effort to go into his room to avoid the older step-sibling. He finally entered his room. Closing the door, he fell onto his bed and ran his hands over his face in an effort to reduce his frustration. Damn Casey! Stupid Casey! Why the hell did she have to be in his life? Or, a better question would be, why did his life revolve around her? It was always her mood that stated the tone for his day. And now, there was no way he could ever again have a good day when all he could think about was what happened the night before. It was a constant effort to ensure that his eyes never wandered over to her form, or that he wouldn't picture her in his mind's eye as she was last night, moaning under him. God! Did he have to picture her like that? But then the truth was, Derek had never thought Casey possible of that kind of raw, mindless, passion. He always pictured her as a prim and proper preppy, who probably organized when she and Max would make out and for how long. Now that he knew better, he felt a horrible feeling in the pit of his stomach. Was she like that with Sam too?

He stood up and turned on his stereo, feeling the mood for something Creed based. He felt like punching something. All through school, he wasn't in his best mood. He had to clench his jaw shut to stop himself from snapping at any random person who thought that it was alright to talk to him. And seeing Max at Casey's locker several times didn't help either. Especially when he saw them kiss. No matter how small the kiss was, his mind would picture them together, doing the same things that they had done, but Max in his place.

He needed a distraction. Hockey practice didn't help since Sam was a constant reminder of Casey. Derek looked around his room. There had to be something that he could do to get her out of his mind. Edwin! Bossing around his brother always kept him occupied, plus, it was fun. His hand was on the doorknob when he stopped suddenly, remembering that his step-sister would probably be home by now. He knocked his head against the door in frustration. Why must his life be so complicated?

Squaring his shoulders in determination, he opened the door. He was not going to let the actions of Casey McDonald dictate his life. As he stepped out of his room, the object of his attraction stepped out of hers. They both stood rigid as their eyes met. He panicked as he felt the familiar rise of desire within him. He had to stop being so impulsive, and think before he acts. His own mind laughed at that thought, better said than done.

"Um... guys?" They both whipped their heads around to see Lizzi looking at them curiously. "What are you doing?"

Casey replied first. "It's nothing, Liz." He used Lizzie as an excuse not to look at her. She was probably giving her sister her 'assurance' smile, he thought amused.

Derek shrugged, not feeling up to talking and avoiding the glances of his step-sisters, headed downstairs, since dinner will probably be laid out in fifteen minutes.

Dinner was more quiet than usual, which made for a slightly unusual meal. Lizzie and Edwin tried their best to fill in the void left by their two older siblings through mindless chatter, occasionally interrupted by Marti who made random comments. George was oblivious to the change of dynamics between the two older children, although his wife was not. All through dinner, she observed the two, hoping to find some inkling as to why they were mad at each other, since it was painfully obvious that they were ignoring each other's existence.

"Casey.." Nora looked at her daughter, hoping that maybe she could pull her into a conversation. "You didn't ask me about the trip. Have you changed your mind?"

Casey looked at her mother, horrified. She was aware of Derek's eyes on her. She couldn't confess that she had broken up with Max just yet. Not in front of him. She didn't know why, but she wanted him to think that she was still in a relationship. "Um.. not really mom." She looked down at her food, hoping that her mother would drop the subject.

Nora looked at her daughter with a curious expression on her face. "I thought you were excited about it. Did you and Max get into a fight?"

Casey couldn't help but quickly glance at Derek at the mention of her ex-boyfriend, and noticed his eyes on her. She looked back at her mother. "No mom." She smiled. "Every thing's fine. I'm just having second thoughts about the trip." Was her mind playing a trick on her, or was Derek actually smirking? Getting mad, she forced her voice to take on her usually perky tone. "But Max has been so sweet. He said that he'll do anything to make me come."

Derek scoffed. "I bet."

Casey glared at him "What's that supposed to mean?"

He glared back. "You know what it means."

"Am I supposed to be a mind reader now?"

"It's not like you need to read people's minds, Princess. No matter what other people think, you still do what you want anyway."

"Oh sure, cause  _I'm_ the stubborn one," she replied sarcastically.

"Alright, that's enough," George interrupted tiredly as he had been enjoying the drama free dinner until they started bickering. "Can we have a nice family dinner without any fighting?"

Casey crossed her arms angrily. "Why don't you ask Derek? He's the one who cant help but butt into private conversations."

"Private conversations?" Derek asked incredulously. "There was nothing  _private_  about that conversation. If the conversation was private, it wouldn't have happened in front of us. Right Nora?"

Casey huffed, annoyed that Derek tried to put her own mother against her. "The conversation was private because we didn't need your idiotic input, right George?" she asked, interrupting her mother's reply.

"Can we say that you are both right?" Lizzie asked, wanting this argument over nothing to end.

"NO!" Casey and Derek stated, arms crossed, as they glared at each other over the table.

"Alright you two," Nora said in her best diplomatic tone. "Lets just keep the rest of the dinner nice and friendly ok?" Her older children said nothing as they continued to eat their dinner, occasionally throwing glares at each other.

\--

"He is  _so_ frustrating!" Casey yelled as she grabbed her stuffed panda and threw it against the wall. She watched the toy fall pathetically to the floor and shrugged, she didn't like that toy very much anyway.

"Isn't he  _always_  frustrating?" Lizzie asked from where she was lying on Casey's bed.

Casey could hear the boredom in her sister's voice, but chose to ignore it. "Well, he doesn't need to be like that  _all_  the time, now does he?" She dropped on to the bed. "I hate his  _so_ much" She said with passion, not really sure if the passion came from hate itself.

Lizzie nodded. "I know. But remember. You have to ignore him. Otherwise he wins."

Casey sighed, her little sister was right. "I know, it's just so hard."

Lizzie patted her arm gently. "You can do it."

Casey smiled at her sister gratefully. "Thanks, Liz."

"No problem." She stood up. "So your venting is done?" Taking Casey's nod as an affirmative, she left.

Casey lied down on her bed for several minutes before she got irritated by her own thoughts. Did every thought have to end with Derek? Sighing, she got up off the bed and headed downstairs in search of any activity that could sufficiently distract her. As she entered the kitchen, she accidentally bumped into the one person she had been avoiding. Derek immediately took a step back, as if she had burnt him.

"You should really look where you're going Princess," he snapped at her as he took a step to move around her.

Casey got over the shock that he was talking to her pretty quick. "I could tell you the same thing. After all,  _you_  bumped  _me_."

Derek stopped and turned to face her as he prepared for the usual battle between them. "Now that would be more believable if you weren't the family klutz."

Casey scoffed. "You know, for a person who is not the family klutz,  _you_  sure get injured like it."

"I choose to get into those fights, but I really doubt that you choose to fall down the stairs." He smirked.

"That happened one time. And I really don't think it's fair that you keep bringing it up." She glared.

"Oh, I think it's plenty fair. Now if you'd excuse me, I'd rather be doing things that are much more fun." He turned to leave.

"Like what? Sucking face with one of your on-call bimbos?" she whispered this more to herself, but Derek heard her.

"I don't see why you should complain, after all, you're one of them."

Casey saw red with that statement. How could he say something so hurtful? "You had no right to touch me," she said slowly, her voice shaking in anger.

Derek's eyes narrowed as he walked forward, and stood barely an inch away from her. His features radiated anger that matched hers. "I didn't hear you complaining last night."

"How could I when you didn't give me any room to breath?" she snapped.

"Oh sure, as if I was the one who was clawing you. Does Max know what a tigress you are in bed?" He sneered.

Casey felt her anger increase minute by minute. "We didn't sleep together!"

"We were pretty close. Or did I imagine that your clothes were about to come off?"

Although she blushed at the memory, her voice was hard. "It  _was_  your imagination." She leaned forward, her face so close to his, she could feel his breath on her. "And FYI, I will  _never_  be one of your sex-buddies."

"Who said I wanted you to?"

Casey scoffed. "You could have fooled me."

"Let's get this straight, Princess. I have never wanted you, and I will  _never_  want you. I'm too busy to waste my time on virgins."

Casey crossed her arms and glared at him, seemingly unaffected by his statement. "Who said I was one?" she snapped, and walking around him, she headed for the stairs, leaving a flabbergasted Derek in her wake.

\--

"You didn't mean that." Casey turned around to face Derek, who had just barged into her room.

"Didn't mean what?" She looked up at him innocently.

" _You_  are Casey McDonald. You make sure that everything is done the way mummy and daddy wants it. And mummy and daddy wouldn't want their daughter having sex until she's married. So, you are still a virgin." He said, as if trying to logically convince himself.

Casey rolled her eyes. It was so easy to get him all riled up. "Whatever floats your boat Derek" She turned her attention back to her book.

Derek stood there silently watching her. "Who was it?" He sounded angry, but he couldn't help it.

"None of your business," Casey replied coolly, her eyes still on the book. She was really getting good at keeping her cool under stressful situations. Living with the Venturi's did have it's advantages.

"Who was it Space Case?" His voice was more forceful now.

Casey looked up at him. "Why do you care?"

Derek didn't falter. "I don't. I just want to know who the sorry bastard was, who couldn't get a  _proper_ date."

Casey's eyes narrowed. "If you're done, you can get out now. And let the door hit you on the way out." Her smile was sinister.

"Fine." He stormed out of her room and slammed the door shut behind him.

Casey let out a breath she didn't know that she was holding. He didn't leave her any choice. What he said really hurt her. Especially since part of her mind still thought of the slim possibility that Derek might care for her. But she doubted it. Like he said, he was a guy, and guys had only one thing on their mind. She sighed as she lied back on her bed. She just hoped that he wouldn't find out that she had been lying.


	7. Chapter 7

Derek was pacing back and forth in his room. She was lying. She just had to be lying. There was no way that Casey would have slept with  _anyone_ before her marriage night. She was too old fashioned in anything sex related. But then again, the way she had kissed him begged to defer that theory. He glared at the wall separating his bedroom from hers. He couldn't take anymore of this. He had to do it. Trying to compose himself so he wouldn't do anything he'd regret, he headed towards her room, trying to be quiet, so as not to wake up the rest of the household.

He opened the door to find Casey lying on her bed reading, a nightly ritual she had always had. She looked up at him surprised, but her tone was cold. "What do you want Derek?"

"Something that you could give me." Derek locked her door so as not to be interrupted, and didn't miss the look of panic that flashed across her face at his action. She jumped off the bed and stood on the other side, as if she would feel safe by placing furniture between them.

"I don't think I'd ever want to give you anything." She replied snidely, while clutching the book to her chest as an added barrier.

Derek silently watched her for her moment. He knew he made her uncomfortable. And he knew that she feared what he would do to her. That was understandable, after all had he not become a little more reckless the past few years? He was no longer a child, and as his eyes swept over her t-shirt and shorts he thought, and neither was she. Deciding to act mature beyond his years, he sighed hoping for courage. "I want a truce."

He saw the death grip she had on her book slacken as she looked at him in surprise. "A truce?"

Derek nodded, feeling like the idiot of the century. He couldn't believe he was going to suggest what he was about to, especially since he had nothing to gain. "We have a few weeks left before we leave. Dad and Nora are constantly on my back to treat you better, so this is how I see it. You stay out of my way, and I stay out of yours. This means that you don't try to nag me, and in return, I wont prank you. You don't snitch about me to Dad and Nora, and I will leave your personal life alone. And finally, you don't walk into my bedroom without an invite, and vice versa. You in?"

Casey looked at him silently, no doubt pondering his suggestion. Part of him wanted her to disagree with his idea, and encourage their previous relationship of innocent bickering and pranking. But he knew that they could never go back, not after what happened the previous night. He wanted her, and if he couldn't have her, he would just have to suck it up and try to forget about her. After all, it was not like he cared about her. He wanted her for her body. There was no other possible explanation. If he managed to sleep with her, his obsession would be satisfied, just like all of his previous exploits. But he couldn't bring himself to make her another notch on his belt. There was a doubt deep in his mind as to whether this was purely lust. A doubt he didn't want to analyze.

Casey nodded silently, and Derek fearing what he would do if he didn't get out of that room, quickly unlocked the door and walked out. He didn't feel content at the thought of co-existing with his step-sister without their constant interactions. Instead of walking into his bedroom, he headed downstairs towards the kitchen, feeling the need for a drink for his suddenly dry throat. After putting on the lights, he headed for the refrigerator and pulled it open a bit violently, a slight indication that he wasn't happy with what he just did. Grabbing the carton of orange juice, he began gulping down the contents, until a voice behind him interrupted him.

"Will you  _ever_ use a glass for that?"

He turned around when he heard her voice. "Hm.. I could have sworn that we agreed on no nagging?" He said, his voice sarcastic. Did she have to be everywhere he goes?

Casey rolled her eyes and leaned against the doorway while crossing her arms over her chest, a stance he recognized. "That was not nagging. It was an innocent question."

"Could have fooled me." He mumbled, loud enough for her to hear as he replaced the carton and closed the fridge door. He prepared to walk out of the kitchen when she blocked his path.

"I think we need to talk." She said slowly. She avoided looking him in the eyes. "About what happened."

Derek watched her, wondering if she was just as affected by what had happened as he was. "Nothing happened." His said his voice sounding lifeless. He started to move around her but she changed her position, keeping him blocked in. He could have easily moved her out of the way, if it weren't for his fear of touching her. A fear that was not based on disgust.

"You can't pretend as if it didn't happen." She whispered. Taking a deep breath, she finally looked up at him, her eyes pleading. "I really want to go back to the way things were."

"Don't worry. They are."

He tried to move around her but was blocked by her again. "No, they're not." She stated determined.

Derek sighed. "Casey! Would you please move? I've got a hockey game tomorrow. And I need my sleep."

"Derek!" she countered. "This is important."

He was getting frustrated. "Listen. What happened, happened. So why don't we just forget that it did?"

"Is it that easy for you to forget about it?" He could here the anger in her voice, as well as the hurt.

Ignoring the feeling of guilt, he looked straight into her eyes, determined to say anything that would make her drop the subject. "Yeah, it is. Did you really think that I would lose sleep over you?"

He saw the tears in her eyes, and instantly regretted his words. Why did he always have to hurt her?

She spoke before he could say anything. "You're right. Why should you?" Her voice cracked as a tear fell down her cheek, causing his throat to close up. He didn't mean it to sound the way it did. He didn't mean to sound so cruel. "It's not like I lose sleep over you." She turned to leave, satisfied that her remark stung him back.

Before he knew what he was doing, he hurried past her, blocking her exit, similar to how she blocked his. A part of him wanted to avoid the confrontation and the tears, but another, stronger part of him, didn't want her hurting. "Casey." He whispered, unable to find the right words to comfort her. He wasn't used to this. He had never apologised and meant it, he had never admitted that he was in the wrong. This was certainly uncharted territory.

She didn't stop. She shoved him in an attempt to move past him, and was surprised when he grabbed her arms in an attempt to fix this problem he had caused. "Derek! Let me go!" Derek felt the guilt within him increase ten fold when her control seemed to give way, and she began sobbing, her struggles against him weakening. "Let go." She whispered, trying one last effort to free herself, but Derek held on, and without a second thought, he pulled her struggling form to him, holding her tight. He didn't know what to do. When Kendra or Sally cried, he used to hug and kiss them, and Derek Venturi showing that much affection made it all better, but with Casey, he doubted a kiss would solve the problem. So, he tried a something he had never done, hoping that it would stop her sobs, which was making it unbearable to hold on to her in this state. "I'm sorry." he whispered into her hair. "I didn't mean it."

Casey pushed him off her slightly, her face a mask of surprise and disbelief. "You expect me to believe you?" She continued to struggle to free herself, although her sobs had reduced in wake of Derek's confession. "Since when don't you mean anything you say to me?"

He let her go, feeling defeated. "I was trying to apologise." He said angrily. Here he was taking a monumental step, and she didn't even believe him.

Casey wiped her tears with the back of her hand, feeling anger replace the hurt. "As if I would forget that your lying skills surpass mine. You have never cared about me, so don't bother pretending otherwise."

"Do you always have to play the victim? Or is fighting a battle without tears a new concept for you?"

"I don't control my tears. I cant believe that you have the gall to hurt me and then expect me to brush it off."

"I cant hurt you even if I tried. You play the part of ice queen pretty damn well." He retaliated.

"You think that  _I'm_ the ice queen?" She questioned hysterically. "You're the one who wouldn't care about anything or anyone unless it's hockey related."

Derek chuckled bitterly. "And it all comes out. Ms.Perfect thinks, just like always, that she's the  _only_  one who cares. Don't look down on me from your pedestal, Princess. You and I both know, I'm the last person in the world who would admit that I cared about things that don't concern me, and that's because, it's probably the truth. At least I don't pretend to care about things just to make others happy. At least I'm honest."

"How dare you! You really think that I'm  _that_  fake?"

"Why not? After all, you pretend to care about me" He sneered, feeling idiotic at how pained he was by that mere thought.

Casey looked at him as if she was seeing him for the first time. "Derek.. "

"Save it." He snapped, turning on his heel and heading towards the stairs. He had just placed his foot on the first step when she grabbed his arm to stop him.

"I do care. You just make things so difficult." She said sounding frustrated.

Derek turned to face her. "It's not like you're a walk in the park either." He looked at her small hand holding onto his arm. "You can let me go now Princess." He said imitating her exact words.

He saw recognition in her eyes, but she held on tighter and looked defiantly into his. "No."

Derek chuckled, wondering how their shouting match could turn into their usual bickering so quickly. "I think you've forgotten how strong I am."

"And I think you've forgotten how determined I am."

"Believe me, I haven't." He said before he pulled her to him with his free arm and kissed her hard on her lips. He had been fighting the urge to this all night. She responded, which didn't surprise him. The kiss wasn't as harsh as the night before although no less intense. His arms circled around her as he began kneading her body to him. He loved the feeling of her hands roaming around his back, running through his hair. He loved how her breathing became hitched and how she mourned every time he gently nipped her neck or caressed her skin a certain way. The sounds she made were driving him crazy, and as a result, the kiss deepened even more, causing their once gentle kiss to become more raw and uninhibited. He needed her. Now. "Bedroom?" He whispered between kisses, while trying to control his own ragged breathing. "Um Hm.." She moaned in response, as if words were too hard to think about right now. Derek lifted her and headed up the stairs, fighting the urge to give in to his weakening knees caused by Casey gently biting the skin just below his ear. He didn't want to think so far as to wonder how she learned to do that.

Derek kicked the door shut as he entered his bedroom not bothering to put on the lights and dropped her on the bed. Covering her body with his within a matter of seconds, he kissed her with all the passion he possessed. They pulled at each other in an attempt to bring their bodies as close as possible. Casey's hands travelled under Derek's shirt to lightly scratch his skin, revelling in his hard torso. She loved the fact that his body was so hard against hers. Within minutes, Derek's shirt hit the floor, and Casey feeling the need to remove any clothing barrier between them, assisted him in removing her own t-shirt. She arched against him giving him room to move his hands behind her to unhook her bra. Their kisses became more feverish and heated as their hands and lips examined every crevice of their bodies. On an impulse, she wrapped her legs tightly around him which caused him to want her even more. Giving into temptation, he moved his hands downwards gently caressing her between her thighs as he bit her neck, eliciting a moan from her. He had hooked his thumbs into her shorts, and began pulling them down when he felt her stiffen against him. She placed her hand on his to stop him. Derek looked down at her confused, unable to read her expression since the only source of light was from the street lamp outside.

"We cant." She whispered. He could practically see her blush.

But his voice was hard as he felt anger rise within him. "Is it Max?" No matter how he acted, he hadn't forgotten about her boyfriend.

Casey looked up at him, feeling the anger radiating from him. Did she have to confess that she lied to him? That Max was no longer a problem and that she was still a virgin? She was aware that she was topless with Derek on top of her, on his bed. Thank God it was dark. She had gone this far before, but to take the next step scared her, even though her body was screaming for her to stop thinking and kiss him. But then another thought stopped her. This was Derek, the player of their generation. How could she have let this happen? Panicking, she pushed against his chest, and moved out from under him. She scrambled, grabbing her discarded clothes from the floor she quickly put on her t-shirt. Derek got off the bed and moved towards her. "It  _is_ Max, isn't it?" He said, his voice deadly.

Casey stayed silent, unable to bring herself to spit out the words. Feeling the need to escape she moved past him and headed for the door. But Derek was fast, stepping behind her, he placed his arms around her waist and pulled her to him. "Forget about Max." he spoke softly against her ear, feeling the shiver that ran through her body. He was more convinced than ever that she wanted him as much as he wanted her. He could always deal with that lumber-head later.

"Let me go Derek! We are not supposed to do this." He would have believed her if she sounded more convinced.

"You don't mean that."

"I do! You only want me so that you can add me to your stupid list." Derek's arms dropped away from her and Casey used the opportunity to take a few steps back from him. His silence spoke volumes, and attested the fact that her suspicions had been right. She felt her throat close up while she felt the familiar sting of tears in her eyes. She had hoped that he would disagree with her, and try to convince her that he actually cared, but he stood there silently.

Derek suddenly let out a bitter laugh, taking Casey by surprise. "You think that I'm using you? Then I guess we're even."

"What are you talking about?"

He advanced towards her. "Did you think that I wouldn't notice  _you_  using  _me_?"

Casey looked at him in disbelief. "What?"

"You have always been more conniving that you let on McDonald. You keep trying to place the blame on me, when you are the whole mastermind behind this whole fiasco."

"What are you talking about? I haven't planned anything. What could I have to gain from this whole mess?"

"You know what you could gain." Derek glared at her, knowing that what he was saying didn't make any sense. "You want to control me." he knew that wasn't her intention, but he wanted to blame her for it anyway.

Casey looked at Derek like he had grown a second head. "What? Control you? How could I possibly control you?"

"I have  _always_  been the one to call the shots, and I will be damned if I let a preppy nerd decide what we do and when we do it."

Casey's chest heaved in anger. How dare he! "So, this is all about control then? You want to make all the decisions is it? Well, I'm sorry Derek, but I'm not one of your bimbos. I actually have a brain. And my brain is telling me that I have been wasting my time with you." She turned to leave when Derek's words stopped her.

"As if my precious time was not wasted on your majesty." He replied sarcastically, causing Casey to turn around and send him a glare. "You treat me like a damn puppet. It's either, you want me, then you don't, you hate me, then you don't. You are so freaking confusing. You change from hot to cold in a matter of seconds. Max needs an award for putting up with you." He finished, his voice filled with venom.

"Well, you don't have to worry about 'putting up with me', because I wouldn't hook up with you if you were the last guy on the planet."

"We already did hook up Princess, so I really don't think that threat is valid." he sneered.

"You are  _such_  a jerk!" Casey yelled at him. "How dare you try to turn this around on me! Thank God we're leaving for college soon. At least I would  _never_  see your face ever again!"

"You're not the only one looking forward to it Princess. The day I never have to see you again, will be the happiest day of my life." He walked to the door and yanked it open. "You can leave now." He snapped.

"My pleasure." Casey snapped back as she headed towards the door.

Just as Casey left his room, Derek turned to her. "And don't forget to give good ol' Maxy my regards." He said before slamming the door in her face. Derek let out a slow breath as he leaned his back against the door in defeat. What had just happened? What had gotten into him? It was as if all sense fly right out the window the moment Casey was in the same room with him. He heard her door slam shut and knew that she would cry herself to sleep. His first impulse was to walk into her room and try to fix this. But he stayed as if cemented to the floor, knowing that he would say or do the wrong thing and end up hurting her more. He let out a frustrated groan as he banged his head against the door.  _What_  was wrong with him? How could he be attracted to his step sister? How could he have nearly had sex with his step-sister? She was everything he was not. And yet, he wanted her. The problem was that he doubted whether he wanted her only physically, which freaked him out. He hadn't felt this way since Sally, although more was at stake here. He glared tiredly at the ceiling. "God, I'm so screwed!"

\--

Casey didn't sit in her usual seat in the front row when she entered her history lesson. Instead she took the seat that most of her classmates fought over, the one right next to the window which provided sufficient distractions from the monotonous droning of their teacher. She looked out of the window hoping to forget that Derek was in the same class with her. That he was sitting at the back of the class, and that for some odd reason, she could feel his eyes on her. She prayed that he wasn't watching her, knowing that if she felt anymore self conscious, klutzilla will be making a grand return.

What happened last night? She had been asking herself that question again and again. She blushed remembering how they had been so close to doing the thing that she had never done before. He had seen her topless. He had kissed and touched her in places that only Max had ever done, although Max never made her feel that desire that only Derek seemed to be able to get out of her. She was so inexperienced compared to him. He, on the other hand had slept with half the female population, a fact that she learned about accidently when she joind the cheerleading team. And she had let him touch her so intimately, had wanted him to touch her so badly. What was wrong with her? Did she have a need to self-destruct?

The class finished relatively quickly since she was lost in her own thoughts. As the bell rang, she quickly gathered her books and left the class, determined not to bump into Max, Emily, and especially Derek. She needed to be alone, she couldn't face any of them right now. Max had been trying to talk to her the whole day, and her guilt just wouldn't let her look him in the eye. Emily was still curious as to who the mysterious guy was, and even though she is her best friend, Emily's intrigue in this situation was hard to deflect. She sighed in relief as she managed to reach her locker without meeting any member of the 'Dreaded Three'. Moving as fast as possible, Casey replaced her books with the ones needed for the next period and shut the locker. She was just about to run down the hall when a voice stopped her.

"You're avoiding me." Emily accused her.

Casey placed a smile on her face, hoping that her best friend couldn't see how fake it was. "I'm not Em. What makes you think that?" She started walking down the hall, hoping that Emily would replace her books as well, but instead she followed her.

"Don't lie to me Case. Some thing's up with you. Why can't you tell me? Usually, I can't get you to stop talking, what's with the silent treatment now? Are you mad at me?" She asked in a worried tone.

Casey turned towards her best friend then, a genuine smile upon her face. "Of course not Em, I could never get mad at you."

"Then what is it?"

"It's nothing."

"It's something."

"Really Em, it's nothing." Casey repeated.

"Okay, I get it. You don't want to tell me." Emily shook her head. "I thought we told each other everything."

"It's just.. I don't think I want to go for today's party."

Emily looked at her confused. "Is that why you have been avoiding me?"

Casey nodded, feeling the lies coming a bit easier when hiding something vital was at stake. "I know you wanted to go, and I didn't want you to be upset with me. But you can still go on your own, or even with a date. You don't need me there do you?"

"That's it?" Emily looked at her suspiciously. "You were worried about what I would think? I don't buy it Case."

"It's true Em. You know how I hate disappointing people, especially you."

"Alright." Casey could have sighed in relief. "I believe you. So why don't you want to come? It's the biggest party of the year."

"I know."

"And it's not like Max is a problem." Emily said cautiously, knowing that the break up was still a testy subject. Casey stayed silent. "Is it the other guy?"

Casey's head snapped up. "What? What makes you think it has anything to do with him?" She laughed nervously.

"He's coming for the party, isn't he?"

"Yeah, he is." Casey sighed, tired of the charade.

"Oh! Well, I don't see why you shouldn't go just because he will be there. You should dress fabulously and have the time of your life. Make him miss you."

"It's not that easy Em."

"Of course it is. After all, don't you have the best fashion consultant ever right here?" She beamed.

Casey smiled at her friend's optimism. "I don't know."

"Well I do. Now come on. We don't need to get detention for getting late for class." She said grabbing her arm. "Cause we need to go shopping after school to get you your fabulous dress."

Casey let herself be dragged down the hall by Emily. Maybe her best friend was right. It  _was_  the party of the year. Why should she miss it just because of Derek?

\--

"What's up with you?" Sam asked frustrated. He didn't think he could handle silent Derek any longer. He wanted his friend back.

"What?" Derek looked up from his lunch as he was shaken awake from his thoughts by Sam's constant questions.

"What's up with you?" Sam repeated slowly.

Derek shrugged. "Nothing."

"Sure." He said rolling his eyes. "And I'm secretly Britney Spears."

Derek smirked at his friend's attempt at humour, though Sam noticed how his smile hardly reached his eyes. His friend wasn't his normal self.

"Dude! Seriously. You have been totally spaced out for the past two days. What's happened?"

Derek continued to concentrate on his lunch, hoping that Sam would drop the subject. "Nothing man. Just nervous about today."

Sam looked at Derek incredulously. He was always nervous before a game, but he never admitted it. Something was most definitely up in the McDonald/Venturi household. Before he could ask anymore questions, Kate, a junior who Derek had always described as 'sexy legs' sat down at the chair nearest him.

"Hey Derek!." Sam rolled his eyes at her fit of giggles, and looked intently down at his food, determined to avoid the flirting. He cared about Derek like a brother, but sometimes he got so sick at how superficial his choices were in women. It hadn't been that bad until Sally had dumped him for her ex, and ever since then, all Derek cared about was scoring.

"Hey." Derek gave a half hearted mumble, which caused Sam to look up at his friend curiously.

Kate wasn't put off by his lack of attention though. "So, I thought maybe I could drop in just before the game today to give you something for good luck."

"Um.. yeah.. sure I guess." He wasn't even looking at her. He was too distracted by something to his right. Sam turned his attention to where Derek's gaze seemed to focus on, and didn't see anything out of the ordinary. Most of the kids were just mingling in the cafeteria like always. He recognized a few people, including Casey and Emily. He turned back to his friend and the girl wondering what was still holding his attention. Kate was still talking about the game and how she was sure that we were a sure win, and Derek was still looking at something, though Sam didn't know what. He suddenly how Derek's face change. Still focusing on whatever he was focusing on, his facial expression which was at first one of observance, was now one of being caught. Sam turned around again, and this time, he noticed how all were in their own little world with one exception. Casey. Emily was talking to her, but she was looking at their table. At Derek, if Sam wasn't mistaken. This was confusing. Something had changed between them. It wasn't the usual glares or challenging smirks. Or maybe he was wrong about the glares he thought, as he saw Derek's jaw clench in anger as he saw Max walk up to Casey. What was going on?

Sam watched as Casey looked nervously towards Derek before smiling up at Max and following him outside. Within the next second, Derek had angrily pushed away his chair while startling Kate, grabbed his book bag and followed the two, with Sam at his heels. "Where are we going?" Sam questioned, hoping that he would get his answer, but Derek stayed silent. He couldn't leave Derek in this current angry state, he knew that he was one of the working buffers to deflect that anger, so he followed his best friend silently.

"Am I interrupting something?" Derek asked snidely as they turned a corner to be met by Casey and Max having a private conversation. Sam looked at his best friend quizzically, did he seriously forget that he was here?

Casey looked beyond pissed, although Max just seemed irritated that they were interrupted. "Why yes." She snapped. "So why don't you just crawl away like the vermin you are?" She said sweetly before turning her attention back to Max, adamant to ignore Derek.

But Derek Venturi is never ignored. "That's classy Case, calling  _me_ the vermin when  _you_  spend half of your life on the floor."

Max decided that this was the time to step in before Casey replied. "Listen man, do you mind? I really need to talk to her a bit."

"Oh sure." Derek said sarcastically. "The one thing the Princess loves to do is talk. Might as well get some ear plugs man. Works like a charm."

"Derek, you imbecile!" Casey screeched. "Why wont you just leave me alone?"

"You didn't ask nicely." He retorted.

"Manners have always been lost on you." She moved towards him.

"Like the concept of fun is lost on you." He moved closer.

"Sure, I can imagine how bugging me could possibly be fun. Don't you have your own life?" Another step.

"Um.. Case.. " Sam noticed Max stammer from the back. "I think we should continue this later." But not surprisingly, neither step sibling noticed as he tried in vain to get himself noticed, and after failing, walked away. Sam debated whether he should leave too, but changed his mind as he saw Casey's fists shake in anger. Maybe he should stay a bit to make sure that she didn't kill his best friend.

"Oh I had my own life alright. I loved my life till your mom married my Dad."

"Well it's not like it has been easy for me either. You made sure of that."

"As if I had to try." He scoffed. "You did it all on your own Princess."

"Not without your unwanted help. You always have to have your way don't you?"

"That's right. And you have been there every step of the way making sure that I don't get it."

"I don't do it on purpose Derek."

"You sure seem like you do. Like I said, stay out of my way, and I'll stay out of yours."

"I wasn't even talking to you.  _You_ came after  _me_." She was right about that thought Sam.

"You practically begged me to come after you."

"Are you seriously delusional? You know what? Don't answer that, I already know the answer."

Derek ignored the remark. "What did you tell Max about what you did last night?"

Sam saw Casey blush and wondered what exactly they were talking about. "That's none of your business."

"Oh I think it's most certainly  _is_  my business. And I don't think I can control what could possibly happen to Max because of it."

Casey's eyes became wide as she understood his meaning. "You stay away from him Derek. I mean it. No pranks, no fights. Got it?"

"What makes you think that I would listen to you?" Casey stayed silent. "I thought so." Derek turned to leave and finally noticed Sam. Casey seemed to notice him at the same time too. They shot each other a look, noticeably uncomfortable that the fight they just had was witnessed. Without a word, Derek continued walking, and Sam hesitantly followed leaving a stressed looking Casey behind. What the hell was that all about?


	8. Chapter 8

Casey looked up from her bed towards the doorway. "I'm not going." She shot her mother a determined look.

Nora sighed at her daughter's stubbornness. "This is the last game of the season and we are all going. It wont be right if you're not there."

"I think it will be Mom. He doesn't want me there."

"I think he does." Nora ignored the disbelieving look Casey gave her. "You know Derek, he wont show it, but he wants us all there. He wants his cheering team."

"Mom! He has the whole school to cheer for him. He wont miss me." Casey turned around so that her back was to her mother. "I'm tired anyway."

"Casey!" Nora said sternly as she moved to face her daughter. "Don't make me use my mom card."

Casey groaned. "Can you not use the mom card yet?"

"Like you said, I'm entitled to certain favors from my eldest daughter since she will be leaving soon." Nora hoped the feeling of guilt might work.

"And this falls under that?" Casey's voice held a sense of dread which her mother ignored.

"I'm afraid so." She looked at her daughter sympathetically. "I'm sorry sweetheart, but this will mean so much to George and Derek."

"To George? Sure. To Derek? I highly doubt it."

"Please? I wont ask you for anything the next few weeks." Her mother said desperately.

She smiled at her mother's attempt. "Mom! You and I both know that that's not true."

"I know." Nora gave her daughter a knowing smile. "I just thought I'd give it a try."

Casey smiled. "Alright. I guess I can see one last excuse for sport filled violence before I go."

"Thanks Casey. You don't know how much this means to me." Her mother hugged her gratefully before she headed towards the door. "Better get ready, we will be leaving in a little while."

Casey watched her mother walk out of the room. She just had to make sure that he didn't notice her.

\--

"You ready?" Sam asked, hoping that his best friend would somehow get his head in the game. Since Derek had refused to go home after school, they had arrived at the hockey stadium early.

"Yeah man. I'm fine." Derek answered half heartily as he leaned against the railings adorned by the outside hall.

Sam looked at Derek again, hoping for some indication as to why he was so distracted. "So.. your family coming?"

"Some of them." He sounded bitter.

"Some?" Sam asked curious. But Derek just nodded, showing no interest in explaining himself. The two of them silently watched the stream of hockey fans and parents enter the building. Some of them wearing the colours of the two rival schools with the same intensity as wearing war paint. Sam had chosen a spot where they could easily see the crowd, but the crowd couldn't see them. After all, who needed added pressure from their fans when they had pre-game jitters?

Derek watched his classmates as they excitedly called out to each other in greeting. He wished he could enjoy the excitement before a game. But then again, he never did. His nervousness always kept him busy. This time however, it was a certain step-sister who kept his mind preoccupied from being nervous. His thoughts were interrupted as he saw Edwin, Lizzie, Nora and Marti in the arms of his father walk through the entrance. At least he could always count on his family to be there to support him.

"Casey's not coming?" Sam asked, as he too had seen the McDonald-Venturi clan.

"Guess not." Derek mumbled, trying to rid the disappointment he felt by her absence. He knew it was a long shot to expect her to come, but he had hoped that her caring nature might win over her pride and anger towards him. Derek was about to head towards the locker rooms when he spotted her. He unintentionally stilled and his heart beat increased as he watched her, Edwin, Lizzie and Marti walk up to one of the stalls selling their team memorabilia. She came? His mind repeated the question over and over. She  _came_?

"Dude! We better go." Sam nudged his arm gesturing towards the direction his other teammates were heading.

"You go ahead. I just need to go meet the 'rents. You know how emotional Nora gets." Before Sam could say a word, he started walking towards the stall where his siblings were having an argument as to which designs suited them better. It was Marti who saw him first.

"Smerek!" She yelled as she ran towards him.

"Hey Smarti" He picked up his sister affectionately and turned towards Edwin and Lizzie who had met him half way. He noticed that Casey stayed near the stall nervously watching them. "You guys are early."

"Dad wanted us to get good seats." Marti piped up.

"Where are they?" Derek asked looking around, willing his eyes not to fall on his other step-sister.

"They got tired of us arguing over what t-shirt we should get them, so they went in to wait for us. " Lizzie answered before giving him a searching look. "Aren't you supposed to get ready now?"

"Derek is always late. He cant help it." Edwin said shrugging.

"Gee, thanks Ed." Derek said disdainfully before roughing up his brother's hair. "Glad to know you hold me up to such high esteem."

Edwin ducked getting away from his brother's grasp, and grinned up at him. "You know it bro."

Derek ignored the cheeky comment and leaned forward as if he was about to share a trade secret. " Anyways, you shouldn't buy anything from this place, it's too over priced. We get the merchandise for free." He finished giving off an air of importance.

"You mean free t-shirts?" Edwin asked.

Derek nodded. "Yup." He put down his little sister. "Now scoot and I'll even throw in some caps."

"Really?" Marti asked.

"Really." Derek said before gently grabbing their shoulders and pushing them towards the entrance. "Now go get your seats. I need to go." He watched them as they shouted out good luck and joined the crowd. As soon as he was sure that they were out of ear shot, he turned towards Casey, who quickly turned away as if she was caught staring. He started walking towards her when he was side tracked by two girls.

"Hi Derek!" They both giggled. He shot a quick look at Casey and noticed that she was studying a cap with intense concentration. "We're looking forward to the party tonight." The blond said while her friend nodded enthusiastically. "We're sure it's going to be a victory party." They giggled.

"Yeah.. See you there." He said walking around them. Derek doubted if he had ever been that rude to girls before. But right now, he was worried about why Casey decided to come watch his game when he had been a complete ass to her.

"Hey." He said hoping he would be able to string words together without sounding like an idiot.

"Hey." He noticed how she avoided looking at him.

"So... you came." Why did he have to sound like he learned the English language just yesterday?

"Yeah." She said somewhat shyly.

This was awkward, very awkward. "Um.." He automatically placed his hands inside his pant-pockets hoping to avoid an image of his current jumpy state. "I thought you wouldn't." Since when did he become so honest?

"Yeah." She repeated as if she was at a loss for words. Then she looked at him. "I wasn't going to..."

"But?" Derek asked curious.

"But.." Casey looked down. "I realized that this is your day, and I should come and support you." She shared a small smile with him that made his heart feel ten times lighter than how it was a few minutes back.

"Um.. thanks.." Why couldn't he say anything remotely intelligent? Thinking quick for the need for some normal conversation, he picked up the cap she had been studying earlier. "You buying this?" He smirked causing her to blush. Whoever was selling the merchandise, thought that it would be funny to have a few caps and t-shirts that read 'Venturi's girl!' Needless to say, he got fifty percent of the profits since those items are the biggest sellers. He didn't miss the irony in Casey looking at that cap, and not to mention he loved it when she squirmed under his gaze.

"Venturi!" They were both startled as he heard his coach's booming voice yell for him. "You plan on socializing or playing hockey?"

Derek turned around to face him. "Hockey, Coach." He practically stood to attention. No one messed with Coach Smithson the day of a game.

"Then get yourself to the locker room. Now!" He said dramatically before storming off.

Derek turned to face Casey, feeling embarrassed that she saw how he cowered when faced with his coach. And as he saw her face, he knew he had a right to worry.

"Well, well, well, this is interesting. The great Derek Venturi is actually  _afraid_  of someone. Hm.. Who shall I tell?" She tapped a finger against her cheek as she looked thoughtful.

"Ha ha! Very funny Spacey. But for your information, I was not afraid." It was time for some Derek-style damage control.

"Really?" She looked at him in mock horror. "So that quiver in your voice was just showing him what? Respect?"

Damn her for mocking him. "I did  _not_  have a quiver in my voice."

"I think you did." She smiled evilly at him. "And to think you make comments on how  _I_  am the one who's scared of teachers. Looks like Derek Venturi actually cares about what other people think." She smiled at him triumphantly.

"Not as much as you do." He smirked.

"Oh I don't know about that. You wouldn't want to get Coach Smithson pissed off or else he just might drop you from the team."

"Don't worry Princess. I've got him  _exactly_  where I want him."

"VENTURI!" Derek groaned, dreading a second meeting. Casey giggled as if Santa had come early that year and earned a glare from Derek. He turned to leave, hoping to avoid his coach's continued fuming, but stopped when she grabbed his arm lightly.

"Good luck Derek." She smiled at him once more then leaned forward and lightly touched her lips to his cheek. Derek could feel his heart stop beating for that millisecond, as his mind froze with the thought that this was the first time she had ever showed such affection towards him. He couldn't stop the stupid grin that plagued his face as she pulled away.

"I don't need it Princess." He smirked cockily which caused her to roll her eyes at him.

"Whatever Hockey Star. Now I think you better hurry before the coach forgets about you."

"Don't worry he wont." Derek made a move to leave, but stopped and turned towards her as if he just remembered something. "And that's Hockey  _God_." He said earning another eye roll.

Avoiding his coach's murderous gaze, he jogged towards the locker rooms, feeling happier than he had been recently. Sam noticed his friend's change in behavior. "You okay?"

"Never better." Derek grinned, as he began putting on his hockey gear.

As they prepared to go onto the ice, Derek clapped Sam on the back for the simple reason that he appreciated his best friend. "Let's go kick some shark tail." He yelled referring to the rival team mascot, and earned an energetic roar from all around the locker room. He didn't notice some of his teammates look at each other quizzically before shrugging away their confusion. After all, a happy Derek is a happy team.

\--

Casey stood at the entrance of the stadium with the rest of her family as they waited for Derek for a celebratory dinner. It was a tradition started by George ever since his eldest son started playing hockey. After every game, win or lose, they would go out for pizza. The rest of the family were relieving some of the exciting moments of the game, while she stood slightly to the side and watched the entrance to the locker room. She didn't know what to think. Derek had actually been civil towards her. And he had played so well. She would never admit it, but whenever she saw him play hockey, she felt a growing sense of pride at his accomplishment. It was not a shock to learn that the three time MVP, and Captain of the senior hockey team had won a hockey scholarship. Four time MVP she mentally corrected herself, remembering the result of today's game.

That's when she saw him. He pushed open the doors, clad in his leather jacket, with his duffel bag slung behind him on his shoulders, surrounded by doting fans as they all tried to hug him or 'high five' him. He was definitely their high school celebrity. He suddenly looked up and his eyes met hers. His face broke into a wide smirk, and he winked at her. Casey shook her head, while trying to hide the amused smile fighting to appear on her face. It was Derek who managed to hunt her down even when it was his moment to celebrate, she thought as she saw him give one last cheer with the crowd and started walking towards her.

He was about to say something to her when her family noticed their star's arrival. She stood back as she watched them hug and congratulate him again and again, their faces showing pride. George relieved his son of his bag and was too busy ushering the rest of the family to their vehicle to notice that the two older kids were awkwardly hanging back.

"So.." Derek said.

"So..."

"What did you think?"

"What did I think about what?" She asked, trying to look confused by his question.

Derek sighed. "About the game." She was so difficult sometimes.

"It was okay." She said nonchalantly.

He raised his eyebrows at her questioningly. "What? No 'Congratulations Derek!' , 'Well Done Derek!', 'I wish I was you Derek!'?"

Casey rolled her eyes at him. "I don't think you need anyone else stroking your ego. And  _why_ would I  _want_  to be you?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe cause..I'm perfect?"

"I think there's a debate going around about that."

"A debate that I would win."

"You never win."

"I  _always_  win."

"Awww.. You  _have_  taken too many hockey pucks to the brain." She looked at him in mock sympathy.

"I bet you would love that idea." He smirked.

"I bet you're right." She smirked back.

"Smerek! Casey! Come on!" Marti yelled. "We're going to get late!" She crossed her arms and huffed. Casey couldn't help but laugh at Marti's theatrics.

"Coming Smarti!" Derek yelled back before grabbing Casey's arm and leading her to the rest of the family. She couldn't help but think how nice it was to not fight with him.

\--

"Okay.. How about this and this?" Casey turned towards her best friend as she brandished a skirt and top in front of her face. Emily groaned and fell back on her bed in agitation.

"Casey! How could you not know what you were wearing tonight? I picked out my outfit the day I found out I was going."

"I know Em. But I was a little busy. Remember?" She shot her a meaningful look.

Emily shook her head in disbelief and got off the bed. "I like the skirt, but I'm not too crazy about the top."

Casey looked at her offended. "What's wrong with the top? Don't you think it's chic?"

"Yeah it is. But, this is a keg party. You don't wear super chic tops just in case someone pukes on you."

"Ew!"

"I know." Emily sighed. "But, I do have a really cute top that you could wear. It'll go great with the skirt."

"Which one?" Casey asked as she started putting away the large heap of clothes they had painstakingly gone through.

"The one that I wore for my cousins birthday. The one we bought after your dance rehearsal?"

"That one?" Casey smiled in memory of that day. "It will go perfect with this skirt."

Emily nodded as she sat back down on the bed. "Too bad we couldn't find anything today."

Casey shrugged. "You know how it is. We never find anything when we want to."

"But how is it possible that practically the whole of London has no cute dress?"

"It's okay Em. I still have a cute outfit." Casey said in an attempt to make her best friend feel a bit better.

"True." Emily leaned against the headboard and watched her best friend as she organized her closet. Giving into her inquisitive nature, she broached the subject they had been avoiding.

"So.. what did Max want to talk to you about?"

Emily observed Casey as her movements seems to slow before she turned to face her. "It's nothing. He just wants to get back together." She said in an attempt to sound unaffected by it.

"And..?"

"And.. We cant."

"Maybe you can."

Casey shot Emily a disbelieving look. "I doubt that Em. I cant go out with him again without telling him the truth. And I don't think that I'm ready for that yet."

"What about the other guy?"

Casey stiffened. "What about him?"

"Casey! Are you never going to tell me who it is? I have been one of the most patient people here. You know I would never tell anyone right?"

"I know! It's just that.. "

"What?"

"I don't think that I'm ready to accept that this happened yet. I feel like I'm in a movie or something. It just doesn't feel real."

Emily looked at Casey, determined not to be deterred. "Is it Sam?"

Casey's head snapped up. "No! Em! I would never cheat on Max with my ex- boyfriend."

"Noel?"

Casey shook her head. "You will never guess, so don't bother."

"Someone who I will never guess?" Emily asked thoughtfully, ignoring the look of dread on Casey's face. "Is it someone on the football team?" Casey stayed silent hoping that her friend would drop the questions. "The basket ball team?" She still stayed mute. "The chess club? Maybe the student council? How about the hockey team?" Emily stopped when she noticed Casey stiffen when hearing the name of the last student group she mentioned. Emily felt excitement at being able to narrow down the mystery guy. "He's on the hockey team?"

Casey looked flustered. "Don't be silly Em. I don't know where you get your ideas from."

"If I'm wrong, why aren't you looking at me?"

"I'm just.. It's just... "

"Who is it Case? You know I know the whole hockey team."

Casey felt frustrated. "He's not there okay?"

But Emily ignored her since she knew that Casey was lying. "Is it Andrew? Simon? The non-punk Trevor?"

"Em! I told you, he's not on the hockey team alright?"

"Look! I just want to know who it is."

"But why? Why do you  _have_  to know? We will be graduating soon, and we wont even see each other ever again." Casey's voice dropped at that last thought. "And we can pretend that this never happened." She whispered, momentarily forgetting the presence of her best friend.

"You really care about him, don't you?" Emily asked gently. She was taken by surprise by Casey's sadness over the situation.

Casey looked up at her, a fake smile plastered on her face. "Don't be silly Em! He doesn't care about me, and I don't care about him. This is for the best." She turned towards her closet and started pulling some of her clothes out. "Now, could you help me? This closet is a mess."

Emily looked at her friend's immaculately arranged closet. "Sure. What are best friends for?"

\--

Derek groaned as his cellphone rang for what felt like the millionth time. "What?" He snapped, not caring who was on the other end.

"Dude! Where the hell are you?" Sam asked.

Derek sighed, not in the mood to explain why he was  _still_  not at Jason's. "Someone, who shall remain nameless, decided to go through seven hundred different costume changes before she finally decided to choose a get up remotely acceptable." He replied annoyed. "Three guesses who."

"Aren't you exaggerating a bit?" Casey yelled equally annoyed from the kitchen.

"Don't think so." He yelled back before turning his attention back to his friend with a frustrated sigh. "As soon as the Princess has her dinner, we'll be over there."

"Dinner?" Sam asked confusion evident in his voice.

"Yup." Derek answered, finding it hard to believe that these words were about to leave his mouth. "For some weird reason, Her Majesty doubts that there would be anything worth eating at the party."

"Health food?" Sam asked remembering Casey's food fetish.

"Health food." Derek agreed.

"Alright man! See you in a few then."

Derek hung up the phone and went in search of Casey to find her in the kitchen eating salad.

"Yuck! Do you have any taste whatsoever?" He asked disgusted.

"Salads are good for you Derek. I don't know why you're such a carnivore."

"A carny-wha?"

"A carnivore. Meat eaters? How can you not know that? Don't you pay attention in science at all?"

"Do you really have to ask that question?"

Casey scrunched up her face. "I guess not."

"Great! Now that we have established that I don't like science, where's the other one?" Derek looked around the room impatiently.

Casey rolled her eyes. "She's getting ready."

"She went an hour ago." He complained.

"Well, that just means that she's probably doing her hair now."

"Ugh! Women!" Derek walked to the refrigerator to grab something to drink. After mumbling about the lack of Dr.Peppers, he picked Casey's favorite Cola and began to gulp it down.

"De-rek!" She shrieked. "That's my last one!"

"Your point?"

"My  _point_ is that it's mine." She stood up and made a move to grab the can away from him, but he eluded her.

"I don't think so Princess. I'm a growing boy who needs nourishment."

Casey scoffed. "The only thing that you need to grow is a brain."

Derek leaned towards her in challenge. "You trying to tell me something McDonald?"

"Are you sure you could understand what I tell you Venturi?" She raised her eyebrows at him.

"I'm sure I could give it a try." He moved closer.

"So it wont hurt your head to think?" She leaned forward.

"I think.. " He leaned even closer.

"What?" She whispered suddenly aware that he was tilting his head forward. He was staring at her mouth, which parted in anticipation.

"Maybe we should skip Jason's tonight." He mumbled nonchalantly, although his focus didn't waver.

"Maybe.." She watched him, waiting for his move.

After what felt like an agonizingly long minute of looking at each other Derek leaned forward, but at the last second, Casey panicked and moved her head so that he kissed her cheek instead. She closed her eyes hating what she did, and dreading Derek's possible wrath towards her. But she was met with silence. She opened her eyes and saw him looking at her with regret in his eyes.

"My mistake." His voice sounded heavy. "Wont happen again." He turned to leave.

"Derek.." Casey called out to him, not sure what she wanted to tell him.

"No!" He turned towards her, his face a mask of hidden emotions. "You don't get to reject me three times." He laughed bitterly. "Twice is more than enough."

"It's not like that. It's just.. "

"What?" He interrupted her. He felt his patience take a beating. "I know you broke up with Max, it's all over the school. So really, there is no reason for us not to do this unless you have been jerking me around all his time."

Casey looked down feeling ashamed for using Max as a shield from Derek. "I didn't mean for this to happen." She said sounding defeated.

"Well neither did I."

"Guys?" They both turned as Emily walked into the kitchen. She looked at them curiously. "What's going on? Am I interrupting something?"

"Nope." Derek started walking towards the living room. "Now lets move it. We are way past fashionably late." He grabbed his jacket, yanked open the door and slammed it shut after him.

Emily looked at Casey. "Is something wrong?"

Casey smiled, hoping that she could keep the tears that threatened to burst out at bay. "No, we just had another fight. Again."

"Are you alright?" Emily moved towards her.

"Yeah.. I just need a tissue or something." Casey looked frantically around the kitchen. She could feel the tears running down her face.

"Here." Emily handed her a dish towel, the closest thing within her reach as she held onto her sobbing friend.

"How about we stay in tonight? We could watch a movie and think of ways to kill Derek."

Casey laughed through her tears which sounded like a choked hiccup. "No Em! It's fine! You were looking forward to this all year."

"Casey!" Emily spoke sternly. "Missing a party is not the end of the world. Besides, college parties are so much more fun." She said causing Casey to laugh.

"Thanks Em! But the truth is, I want to go."

"Are you sure?" She looked at her with skepticism.

"Sure." Casey grinned, feeling her tears cease.

"Okay then. I'll call my mom, she can drop us."

"No. It's alright, we can go with Derek." Casey removed herself from Emily's embrace.

"Casey! He made you cry."

"He always makes me cry." She retaliated.

"I can get her you know, it's not a problem."

"I know." Casey nodded. "But I'm feeling better now, and I really don't want to bug your mom."

Before Emily could say anything, Derek walked in. "You girls coming or what?"

Emily looked at her friend expectantly, trying to show Casey that she would follow whatever decision she makes. Casey raised her chin at Derek defiantly, her face free of any teary traces. "Of course we're coming Derek. You cant get rid of me that easily."

Derek glared at her. "If you only knew how much I try." He turned on his heel and walked out.

Casey and Emily shared a look before they grabbed their purses and followed him out of the house. Emily had a bad feeling about tonight.


	9. Chapter 9

Emily was uncomfortable to say the least. On one side was Derek, who was concentrating on the road intensely, his jaw clenched in anger, while Casey sat at the back, with a defeated look across her features. The drive was silent. The step-siblings made no move to try to reconcile whatever fight they just had, and Emily, aware of their history, followed their lead.

Once they arrived at Jason's house, and Derek had effectively slammed the car door shut and headed inside, she grabbed Casey's hand with a quick 'we need to talk', and dragged her towards the side of the house, which proved to be secluded enough.

"Okay." Emily took a deep breath and turned to face her friend. "I need to ask you something."

Casey looked at her confused. "About what?"

"There is this crazy thought that's been going around my mind for a while now." Emily said as she started pacing back and forth as if she was trying to organize her thoughts. "I mean, it's totally crazy! There is  _no_  way it's true." Her hands began flapping in nervousness. "It's a completely ridiculous idea, so I  _know_  that my mind is making it up. There is no other excuse."

"Em..." Casey started, but Emily interrupted her by putting up her hand.

"Case..." Emily finally turned towards her hopefully. "Please tell me that the mystery guy is not Derek."

Casey's face must have frozen at the mention of her step-brother, but the silence was enough for Emily. "Oh my God!" She whispered slowly, unable to believe that the two people she thought hated each other were having secret rendevous. "How did this happen?"

Casey shook her head. "I don't know." She could feel the sting of tears in her eyes. "Are you mad at me?" She asked dreading the answer.

Emily looked at her best friend perplexed. "Why would I be mad at you?"

"Because.." Casey choked out, her tears flowing freely down her cheeks. "You always liked him and talked about him, and you think that he's so perfect."

"Casey.. I  _am_  mad at you, but not for the reason you think.  _Why_  didn't you tell me? Was that the reason you guys had that fight?"

Casey looked at Emily with disbelief in her eyes. "You're not mad?"

"No.. How could I possibly be mad at you? I guess getting to know the real Derek Venturi kinda put me off that whole hero worship thing." She smiled, earning a choked out chuckle from Casey.

"You're a great friend, Em," Casey said gratefully.

"I know." Emily smirked. "Now, how about you tell me everything that has happened? From the beginning."

\--

"So then,  _this_  guy decides to go against the Coach and dekes the puck, gets the goalie to the right, then BHAM!" Andrew raised his glass in triumph. "And the rest is History. Yeah!" He clapped Derek on the back as the girls around the three hockey players squealed in appreciation. "Without Triple D here, we would not be State Champions."

Derek smiled half heartedly, not feeling up to continuing the stories of their 'glory days', which marked by today was officially over.

"Come on Andy." Trevor gestured to himself. "Don't forget us, we helped out too." He chuckled.

Andrew looked at his teammate, understanding his hidden meaning. "Oh yeah. I mean, without us, D will have no one. Am I right D?" He roughly shook his friend to try to illicit a response.

"Yeah." Derek mumbled before taking a sip of his drink. He wanted to be anywhere but here. And he was granted his wish when Emily suddenly grabbed his jacket and moved him away from the protesting crowd.

" _What_  is your problem?" She crossed her arms over her chest as if prepared for battle.

"Huh?" Derek asked. He was seriously confused. What was she talking about?

"Why wont you talk to her? That's all that she wants."

Derek's face darkened as realization hit. "I'm not the one who's avoiding the issue."

"She's just really confused now. What happened between you two was huge."

Derek looked at Emily surprised. "You know about that?"

"Yeah." She nodded. "Now can you please go talk to her?" Her voice pleaded with him.

But he shook his head. "I'm not getting myself involved again."

"So what? Are you going to ignore her until she leaves?"

"Yeah. Something like that."

Emily bit her tongue to stop her scream of frustration. "Look! I know that you are not exactly a touchy-feely kind of person, but don't you think that you owe Casey at least a talk?"

"What exactly did she tell you?" Derek asked angrily. "Did she tell you how  _she_  was the one who couldn't make up her mind? How  _she_  keeps pulling me back and forth, driving me crazy in the process?"

"I know it's difficult."

"Casey McDonald  _is_  difficult. I don't want to talk to her. I don't even want to  _look_  at her right now." He turned to leave, but Emily stepped in front of him.

"Why not? I'm sure you guys can work through this."

"I don't even know what  _this_  is. I'm sure we'll go our separate ways and forget everything that has happened."

"Do you want to forget it?" She asked softly, hoping to get through to his sensitive side.

Derek sighed. "I don't know. But one thing's for sure, she's not beating herself up over it, so neither will I."

"Derek, she  _is_  beating herself up over it. You have no idea how guilty she's feeling right now."

"Good. She should feel guilty."

Emily looked at him in disbelief. "So you're okay with this? Casey's out there crying over you, and you're okay with it?"

Derek's face fell at the mention of Casey crying, but his voice was stony. "What do you want me to do?"

"I want you to talk to her." Emily nearly shrieked in frustration.

"Well, I cant do that."

"Why not?

"If she wants to talk, she knows where to find me."

"Why do you have to be so stubborn?" She asked aloud more to herself.

Derek shrugged but didn't say anything.

"Derek.." Emily began prepared to give him a long speech.

"And by the way, she's not exactly heartbroken." He interrupted bitterly, before walking away. Emily turned around to where Derek's eyes had previously been, and saw her best friend, drink in hand, laughing at a joke said by the goalie.

\--

Casey turned back to the guy she was talking to. She had been intently watching the conversation between Emily and Derek under the pretense of talking to whats-his-name.

"Shall I get you another drink?" He smiled at her.

"Thanks." Casey beamed at him, while holding out her plastic cup. He was pretty cute, she thought as she watched him walk towards the kitchen. She turned around to see Emily move towards her. "I told you he wont listen."

Emily sighed. "Yeah.. well... I tried." She suddenly nodded towards the kitchen door. "I see you met Jason."

Casey looked at her surprised. "Jason? As in, owner-of-this-house Jason?"

Emily nodded. "Yeah. He's the goalie. Each guy takes a turn to have a post-game party at their house, and this time it was Jason's."

"He seems nice." Casey said, as she spotted him calling out to several friends in greeting.

"He  _is_  nice. Last year for valentines, he organized for various people to give a dozen red roses to his girlfriend throughout the day."

Casey turned to Emily, a memory falling into place. " _He_  was the one who went out with Serena?"

"Yup."

"Awww. That is  _so_ romantic." Casey said turning back to the goalie who was now walking towards her with a drink in each hand.

"Here you go." Jason handed over her drink.

"Oh Jason? I would like you to meet my best friend Emily. Emily, Jason."

"Emily? Great to meet you. Shall I get you a drink?" Jason gestured towards the keg in the kitchen.

"No it's alright." Emily practically giggled. "Actually, I have to seek out a certain someone so, if you'd excuse me.." Giving Casey a slight squeeze of encouragement, she left.

"You seem to look at him a lot." Jason observed

.

Casey's eyes which had wandered over to Derek unintentionally, snapped up. "Who?"

"Derek?" He asked amused. "You know, the step-brother?"

She looked down embarrassed. "I don't look at him. At all."

Jason chuckled. "Nah, it's cool. He looks at you a lot too."

"I doubt that."

"So you guys had a fight huh?"

Casey looked at him surprised. "Is it that obvious?"

He shrugged. "Sometimes. Venturi is a great guy, but he finds it hard to control his temper."

"What does his temper have to do with it?" Casey asked him curiously.

"I don't know. Best person to talk to about that would be Sam."

"Sam?"

Jason nodded. "They are best friends after all."

"Yeah." Casey muttered.

"You know, I always wondered why I never see you at these parties." He said with an air of trying to solve a puzzle.

"That's easy." Derek said as he came up behind her. "Space Case doesn't really like to move around with people." He smirked, earning a chuckle from Jason and a glare from Casey.

"As if you would know what I do and why." Casey challenged.

Derek looked at her with an air of seriousness. "You know I know everything about you."

Casey stared back at him, unable to bring herself to counteract him with a catty remark. Jason cleared his throat, feeling uncomfortable in the midst of all the sudden tension. "Well, I better head off. After all, the job of a host is never done." He smirked before walking away.

The step-siblings hardly noticed his departure as they quietly watched each other as if daring the other to make the first move. Casey couldn't really take anymore of the silence. "Um.. About what happened today.."

"Don't worry about it." Derek shrugged.

Casey looked at him surprised. "Don't worry about it? Is that all you're going to say to me?"

"Er.. yeah.. What did you expect me to say?"

"I don't know. Maybe something like, we should talk?"

"Talk? You want to talk? Sorry, Princess, but I'm not much of a talker."

"Derek!"

"Hey! Don't get mad at me just because you want to over analyze everything. So what? We made out a few times and now it's over." He said nonchalantly causing Casey to look at him in disbelief. "Now we can go back to bugging the hell out of each other."

"You don't believe that." She said refusing to believe that he was so unaffected.

"Not exactly. Look Case. These things happen. What we can do is ignore it and go ahead with our lives." He leaned towards her. "Don't worry, I'll continue pranking you." He winked at her before turning around and walking away leaving a stunned Casey behind.

\--

"Ugh! I want to kill him!" Casey practically screamed in frustration. It was a good thing that the music drowned her out to all who were around her.

"No you don't." Emily said, feeling the need to soothe her best friend.

"You didn't see him Em. He didn't care. He just didn't care."

"He does care."

"No he doesn't. He's a Venturi. Apparently, that means that he can hook up with whoever he wants and not feel a thing."

Emily sighed, there's a certain limit that a friend could take of venting. "Look, there he is." She gestured towards him. "Just go and talk to him. What's the worst that could happen?"

"He could totally humiliate me for starters." Casey muttered.

"Go! You need to do this."

Casey sighed. "You're right. I don't need regret." She took a deep breath to calm her nerves. "Wish me luck."

"Don't worry Case, you'll be fine." Emily smiled at her encouragingly.

With a grateful smile, Casey headed towards Derek, who luckily was walking towards the kitchen, probably to get another drink. As she entered the room, she noticed that no one else was there but Derek, who was filling his cup with his back to her. She cleared her throat.

"What?" He asked annoyed. He didn't bother turning around, he knew that voice anywhere.

"Can we talk?"

"Let me think." He faced her with a thoughtful look. "Um..No." He took a sip from his drink without taking his eyes off her and leaned against the counter, as if expecting more.

"Well, too bad. Because I'm going to talk, and you're going to listen." She ignored him when he rolled his eyes at that remark. "You're right. We made out several times, and I think that it was unexpected, and weird and it should have never happened. But it did. And we should be mature adults and talk about it." She looked at him expectantly, but all he did was cock an eyebrow at her in question, so she continued. "I guess I'll go first then. And it would help if you didn't look so bored." She took a deep breath for courage. "First of all, why did you kiss me?"

"I didn't kiss you. You kissed me." He retaliated.

Casey shook her head. "Don't lie to me Venturi. We both know that it was you who started it."

"Dream on McDonald. Just because you couldn't keep your hands off of me, does not mean that I suffer from the same thing."

Casey sighed feeling defeated. "Derek, can we please cut it? For some unknown reason, we both wanted to.." She couldn't say the word. "...didn't we?"

His jaw clenched. "What do you want me to say? You made it insanely clear that it was a mistake, and now you want me to.. what? Grovel at your feet?" He laughed bitterly. "You really don't hide your ego, do you?"

"I just want to understand what exactly happened." She tried to explain.

Derek stood and started moving towards her. "What happened was.." But he was interrupted when four of his teammates walked in, jovially bickering about which girl was hitting on which guy. After they nodded in acknowledgement at Derek, he shared an uncomfortable look with Casey before grabbing her hand and leading her to the stairs.

"Where are we going?" She asked feeling panicked. The thought of being alone in a room with Derek, wasn't something that she wanted.

"Privacy." He muttered, as he pulled her up the stairs with him. He found the room he was looking for and gestured for her to follow him in. "Jason's room. He wont mind." He closed the door and leaned against it. "Alright. Where were we?" He asked with as much interest as discussing the weather.

"Do you not want to talk about this?" She asked crossing her arms over her chest.

"Have I been hiding my interest in this topic all this time?" Derek countered sarcastically.

"This is serious Derek. Why cant you act your age for once and have a normal conversation with me? One with no jokes and no sarcasm."

Derek scoffed. "I think we can safely say that that will happen, when pigs fly. I told you. We should forget this ever happened. I'm just trying to follow your wishes, and now, you're making it difficult."

"My wishes? I never said that we should forget what happened."

"You acted like it." He accused her.

Casey gasped in disbelief. "I cant believe you are so petty. I don't stroke your ego like all the other bimbos who follow you around and you dismiss me, just like that. Is that why you're making this so difficult? Because I didn't let you kiss me?"

Derek's face hardened as he glared at her. "Would you like to explain to me why you made me look like a pathetic idiot? I wasn't delusional Case, you were flirting with me. And don't even try to deny it."

"You're right, I was. But then, I remembered who you were, and who I was. I knew that I was going to be just another girl for the great Derek Venturi. And I don't want to be just another girl"

He looked at her as if he was finally beginning to understand her. "You don't think I'm good enough for you, do you? Let me guess, to be your boyfriend, the number one requirement is potential husbandry materials. Tell me something Case, did Sam and Max manage to satisfy all fifty seven thousand requirements that you came up with? Cause personally, I think your system's flawed."

"I never said that." Casey protested.

"Of course not." Derek replied, sarcasm in place. "All you said was that you couldn't be bothered being in the same league as any other girl. You must be on your own league."

"Is that so wrong?" She asked surprising him. "Is it so wrong that I want the guy that I go out with to concentrate on me and only me?"

"And you think, that I'm the sort of guy who couldn't possibly be faithful to any girl." Derek stated disgusted. "You know very well that I have  _never_  cheated on any of my girlfriends."

"How you even had any relationship without been able to talk about your feelings is beyond me." Casey said, changing tactics.

"Oh I have feelings alright." Derek started moving towards her. "I'm pretty sure that the feeling I'm 'feeling' right now is close to being pissed off."

"Well at least you're not the only one feeling it." She snapped.

The two of them glared at each other for some time, determined to hold their ground. Until finally, Derek spoke. "We done?"

Casey's eyes narrowed up at him. "Yeah. We're done." She spoke coldly, hoping to convey that it wasn't only the conversation that was over.

Derek moved aside to let her pass. She slammed the door behind her and stalked off angrily, unable to believe that she had thought of reconciliation between herself and that jerk. But she was determined not to let him get to her. This was the most popular senior party, and she was going to enjoy herself. And she was determined to forget all about Derek 'The Idiot' Venturi.

\--

Everything was woozy, that's for sure, thought Casey as she laughed at whatever the guy in front of her said. She wasn't really listening, but how he said whatever he said was really funny. So she laughed.

"Case.." Emily suddenly appeared next to her. "What are you doing?"

"EMILY!" Casey shrieked before pulling her friend into a hug. She turned towards the guy in front of her. "This is my best friend. And, she's the greatest."

"Really?" He asked sounding curious. "Best friends huh? So you do everything together?"

Before Casey could answer, Emily stepped in. "Not everything." She said while grabbing Casey's arm and dragging her away from him. It would have been a smoother transition if Casey didn't trip over her feet and continuously giggle 'Hello's to random people. "We need to get you home." She mumbled.

"What? Home? But the party just started." Casey whined.

"How many drinks did you have?"

"Just a couple."

"It's not even midnight, and you're already wasted. That's great Case."

"I know. Isn't it?" Casey beamed.

Emily finally managed to get Casey to sit on one of the chairs, and made a move to grab her purse. "I'm going to go get Derek okay? So stay put."

Casey grabbed Emily in panic. "No! Don't get Derek. He hates me. I don't want him here."

Emily nodded. "Okay I wont." She said without having any intention of following her promise.

"Okay." Casey giggled. "As long as you don't."

"You girls alright?" Emily looked up to be faced by one of the defence-men of their hockey team.

"Yeah." Emily said feeling slightly embarrassed. "She just had a little too much to drink."

"I haven't." Casey protested with a pout.

He laughed. "You're Venturi's sister right?"

"Step-sister." Casey mumbled, now feeling sleepy.

He turned to Emily. "Well, I'm about to go home now, if you want, I could drop her off."

"Um.. that's kind of you. But Derek's our ride. So you don't need to trouble yourself."

"It's no trouble. I pass that way."

"I bet you do." Derek sneered behind them.

"Venturi." He sneered back.

"Watson." Derek matched his contempt.

Emily watched the two silently stare daggers at each other before she cleared her throat. The action worked perfectly, since it caused both hockey players to be aware of the presence of others in the small living room.

"Aren't you supposed to be leaving?" Derek asked with a slight edge to his voice.

"Don't worry, I am. I was just offering your step-sister a lift." Matt said, matching Derek's hostility.

"Well I'm here, so feel free to leave." Derek's smile was almost sinister.

"It's her choice if she wants to come with me." Matt challenged.

Derek chuckled. "I really doubt she would go home with a perfect stranger when I'm there."

"But I'm no stranger."

"You are to her," Derek snapped.

Emily thought it was best to interrupt, before a showdown for the position of alpha-male occurred. But before she could say a word, the person they had all currently forgotten, spoke.

"Are we going yet?" Casey squinted up at Emily.

"In a sec." Emily replied before looking at Derek questioningly, but he was too busy staring at Matt, with a look that would make anyone think twice about crossing him.

"Let's go," Derek said turning towards Emily. He moved forward and lifted Casey alongside him.

Casey smiled up at him before she snuggled against him. "Mmm...Derek," she mumbled as she made herself comfortable.

Derek tried his best not to think about the shiver that traveled down his spine when she spoke against his skin. With a quick look towards Emily, and a less than civil look towards Matt Watson, he led Casey outside. Part of him was dreading the next morning.


	10. Chapter 10

Casey groaned. She wasn't a swearing woman, but the headache she was experiencing made her want to mutter obscenities that no one had ever heard her utter. But she didn't. Instead, she groaned again. Getting up gingerly from the bed, she thought that she was pretty lucky. This hangover wasn't as bad as the last. At least the room wasn't spinning. She opened the door and stepped outside, determined to somehow pop some aspirin before the pain ruined her day. As she past the first door to her right, she stopped as she registered that it was wide open. Her headache seemed worse as memories of the previous night flooded her mind. Derek was up. She looked at the stairs in dread, her mind weighing the merits of two pills against a possible confrontation in this state. Deciding that fear should not be in her vocabulary, Casey started down the stairs. As she spotted the folded piece of paper on the wooden banister, she sent out a silent prayer of thanks. She had momentarily forgotten that today was the first Saturday of the month. In order to appease Nora's need to have 'family time', George encouraged a breakfast outing to celebrate the first weekend of every month. It was not mandatory. Derek usually slept in while they brought back food for him. She picked up the note to read the words she expected. Hopefully, Derek went with them.

Sighing, Casey moved to the kitchen and poured herself some cereal. After she swallowed the aspirin, she sat down, prepared for a silent breakfast by herself. But like most days in the McDonald-Venturi household, peace and quiet was never a possibility. The doorbell rang causing Casey to groan out loud. Was she never going to have alone time? Fighting the fatigue, she opened the front door.

"Sam!" She stated surprised. "Derek's not here."

"Good morning to you too." He chuckled. "Yeah I know he's not here. He wanted me to pick him up to go to the rink. I know I'm a bit early. Mind if I come in?"

"Not at all." Casey moved to make room for him. "Sorry, I guess I'm a bit spaced out today." She said as she closed the door.

"Yeah, I kinda guessed that." He said with a knowing look.

Casey blushed. "I wasn't that bad, was I?"

"Nah, you weren't as bad as some of the guys."

"That's good news. By the way, why isn't Derek taking the Prince?"

Sam shrugged. "We figured it made more sense for me to pick him up since I pass this way. No point taking two cars."

Casey beamed at him. "Lizzie will be so proud." She turned towards the kitchen. "You want juice or anything?"

"Yeah.. thanks." He said following her.

Casey began pouring the orange drink into two glasses as Sam sat at the counter. "So, you remember everything from last night?"

Her cheeks reddened. "Of course I do." Sam threw her a disbelieving look. "Okay, maybe not everything. There are some fuzzy parts in my memory."

"Do you remember 'zwing'?" He asked holding back laughter.

"Zwing?"

Sam nodded. "Yeah. You somehow thought that my shirt was, and I quote, 'very zwing'."

Casey gasped. "I didn't."

Sam laughed. "You did."

"So I make up words then?"

"Yup. I forgot how much fun drunk Casey was."

"I was not drunk." He shot her another disbelieving look. "Okay, maybe I was a little." She laughed. "At least I'm a sleepy drunk." She suddenly turned serious as she remembered one of the conversations she had the night before. "Can I ask you something?"

Sam shrugged. "Shoot."

"I was talking to Jason last night, and he mentioned something about Derek's temper and how that was related to me." Sam suddenly looked really interested in his drink. "He asked me to ask you about it."

"It's nothing." Sam replied, but Casey could see that he was holding out on her.

"Sam." Casey pleaded.

Sam sighed. "I guess what Jason meant was that whenever you guys fight, Derek becomes unbearable."

"But we fight all the time."

"I don't mean the pranking fights. I mean the real fights. Which have been happening a lot recently." Sam added as an after thought.

"Oh." Casey looked down at her cereal, unable to guess the value of this piece of information.

"How are things? With the two of you, I mean."

"I don't know. We've never really fought like his before."

"I know." Sam nodded. "He practically killed Matt out on the ice because of it."

Casey looked at him surprised. "Matt? The guy he fought with?"

Sam looked uncomfortable. "Yeah."

"Why  _did_  they fight?" She asked curiously.

"Er.. Maybe you should ask him that."

"But.."

"Case, I cant.."

"I know, I know. Best friend's rule or whatever. But cant you just tell me this one little thing? Please?"

Sam chuckled. "Ask him yourself." Casey was about to continue the pleading when Sam's phone rang. "Hello?" He looked at her, and she knew that it was Derek who was on the other side. "Yeah.. I'm here..Uh huh.. Alright.. See you there." He snapped his cell shut. "That was Derek." He said unnecessarily. "Turns out that your parents are dropping him at the rink, he's going to meet me there." He stood up. "Thanks for the juice."

Casey smiled at him as she started walking him to the door. "No problem. This was nice wasn't it? Just sitting and talking, just like old times."

"Yeah it was. See ya Case." And he walked out with a final wave.

"Bye." Casey closed the door and walked back to the kitchen to finish her breakfast. She couldn't help but go over their conversation in her mind.

\--

"Sammy! Finally! What took you so long?" Derek yelled as Sam came on to the ice, hockey stick in hand.

"I was waiting for a certain someone who told me to come to his place to pick him up." Sam replied, skating to a stop.

"Oh yeah. Sorry about that." Derek mumbled as he pulled out a hockey puck out of his pocket. "You ready?"

Sam nodded. "First fifteen goals win. I'll take the right. You okay with left?"

"Yup, and don't forget we switch after the first seven."

"And  _you_  don't forget that no violence is allowed."

Derek smirked. "Have I ever been violent?"

Sam smirked back. "Is that a trick question?"

They moved to the middle of the ice and took up their stance. Both huddled close to where they expected the puck would fall once Derek tossed it. "Three.. Two.. ONE." Derek yelled as he tossed the puck, and the game began. It was invigorating and exactly what Derek needed. Sufficient distraction. He could always count on Sam to do whatever he needed him to do, and today was no exception.

The game ended as it always did, as a tie, since both Derek nor Sam never let the other leave the rink if they were one point behind. It was so far a perfect day for Derek. At least it was until they got into Sam's car.

"What's up with you and Casey?" Sam asked cautiously. He wanted to discuss his friend's behaviour, but didn't want to face his anger.

Derek's head snapped up at the question. But within seconds, he had masked his panic with a shrug. "What makes you think that anything is up?"

Sam rolled his eyes. "Dude! You have been even more impossible than normal."

"And you think that it's because of Casey?" Derek scoffed. "Please, she doesn't affect me at all."

Sam sighed. It was always a fight to get Derek to admit anything, especially if it's something that's bothering him. "Look, we can discuss it now, or I can keep harping on it 'till we discuss it."

"You sound like her."

"Yeah well, sometimes, Casey knows what she's doing." He quickly glanced at Derek before turning his attention back on the road. "You're mad at her. That much I know. Why?"

Derek's jaw clenched. "The woman doesn't know what she wants. And apparently I'm supposed to be her little puppy who sits when she says sit." He said frustrated.

"And what's wrong with that?" Derek glared at him, causing Sam to laugh in good humour. "She's of the female species. And a wise Derocrates once said, that that is what made women, women. Confusion."

"I doubt she wants what I want." Derek muttered more to himself as he looked outside at the passing scenery.

Sam kept his eyes on the road, unable to think of a suitable response. Should he or shouldn't he? But deciding that Derek was too stubborn and ignorant for his own good, he finally spoke, breaking the silence. "I'm guessing that she wants what you want."

Derek stiffened in the seat next to him, as if he had temporarily forgotten that Sam was there. "What are you talking about?"

"Casey said some things last night, just before I left to find you." Sam saw Derek watch him intently from the corner of his eye. "She was worried that you were mad at her."

"I'm always mad at her." Derek said impulsively.

"And.." Sam continued ignoring him. "She asked me why you didn't care about her. Why you kissed her, and then ignored her. And also, why you're such an idiot." He glanced at Derek. "I didn't have an answer to the last question." He smirked.

Derek stayed silent for a while contemplating his next move. "So you know." He didn't need to apologise, did he?

"Yeah. Seriously man! You and  _Casey_? I can't even picture it."

Derek groaned. "Neither can I. She's just so..  _Casey_."

"And you're so you." Sam stated. The disbelief still hadn't left his voice.

"Gee, thanks man. Great to know what you really think of me." Derek said bitterly.

"I just want to know one thing." Sam asked seriously. "Is she a Meagan or a Tina?"

Derek knew what Sam wanted him to say, but he didn't think that she was either. When they were freshman, a senior, Eric had simultaneously dated two girls and when that was exposed, he stopped it from blowing up in his face, and for that he was Derek's hero. Meagan was his steady girlfriend, while Tina was the blond bombshell who was a practical one night stand.

"Neither." Derek said slowly. "She's a Casey." After all she  _was_  on a league of her own.

"Dude! You do realize that I'll have to kick your ass if you hurt her. Right?"

"Dude!  _She_  would kick my ass if I hurt her."

Sam shook his head. "I can't believe this is happening."

"You, me, both." Derek mumbled.

They sat there silently for a few minutes until Sam spoke. "So then..this is.. serious?" He almost sounded as if he was afraid of the answer. Derek had never been boyfriend material, eventhough he is loyal when he is one. What bugged Sam about his best friend was the fact that he had hooked up with girls more often than he changed his clothes. And Casey was the other extreme. She needed commitment. He remembered their relationship and part of him doubted if Derek would have that much patience to put up with it. Derek and Casey together? How is that even possible?

"What is this? Oprah? First it's Emily, then Casey, now you. Does everyone want me to talk about this?" Derek asked frustrated.

"Emily knows?" Sam asked.

"Yup. And she thinks that I need to talk to her."

"You  _do_  need to talk to her." Sam saw Derek roll his eyes. "Weren't you in two relationships before? Didn't you talk? Because that's what women do. They talk."

"I know. But Casey's different."

"How?"

"With Kendra, it was easy. She would cry, I would nod, she would think that I'm a great listener, and then we would make up. With Sally, she would tell me what I should do, I would do it, and then we would make up. With  _Casey_.. It's different."

Sam nodded. "You're right. Everything you say and do will be under a microscope. She will analyze everything you say and wonder what your real intentions were in saying whatever you said in the first place."

"See? That is  _exactly_ what I mean. She is completely paranoid. Completely.." He sighed. "..paranoid."

"But?" Sam encouraged.

"But.." Derek looked unhappy that he was going to admit it. "I can't stop thinking about her. And for some unknown, God forsaken reason, I actually find some of the most stupidest things that she does cute. Can you believe that? I actually think it's cute. I mean, these things used to annoy me."

"What things?" Sam asked curious. Maybe Derek was serious about Casey.

"I don't know." Derek shrugged. "Like her rituals. Did you know that she takes her toothbrush with her whenever she leaves the house?"

Sam chuckled. "Yeah. So she could brush after every meal."

"Seriously, who does that? And don't forget her need to make sure that everything is in the right place. She would go crazy if she saw a frame shift. And not to mention shopping with her is always fun." He said sarcastically.

"Why?"

"Space Case doesn't believe in frozen foods. She needs to make things from scratch, like the stone age. Plus, she rolls her eyes practically for every sentence.. "

"She does that only when you're around." Sam smirked.

Derek scowled. "Still, it hurts my eyes to watch her. And I still don't get how she could find studying fun. I thought she needed to be in a mental institution for that one."

Sam shook his head, unable to believe that he was going to encourage this. "Dude! You should tell her these things. Then maybe.. _maybe_..she would forgive you."

"Are you crazy? She would hold it over my head for life! No way man."

Sam sighed, frustrated. "Are you two seriously competing to see who could be a bigger ass?" Derek stayed silent. "You are, aren't you? I should have known that this would turn into a competition, everything else does. Look man, just tell her you like her and get it over with."

"Aren't you supposed to be her ex-boyfriend or something? The one who is not supposed to set her up?"

"Yeah well, I'm her ex, as well as her friend as well as your best friend. So I think I can set her up with whoever I want."

"And you think that I'm the best choice?"

"No." Derek glared at him. "But I don't see the point in you and Casey fighting over who can care less, when it's so clear that you two like each other." Sam said stopping the car in front of Derek's house.

Derek pushed open the door harshly determined to leave in anger in response to his best friend having such a low opinion of him, when Sam stopped him. "Yo D! I might have told Emily about Watson."

Derek snuck his head back in. "What? Why the hell did you do that?"

"I wasn't thinking man. She asked why you didn't like him and I told her. It didn't help that I had a few drinks by then. Just hope that Casey thinks that what you did was romantic or whatever."

"With my luck.." Derek said bitterly. "That's not going to happen."

\--

Derek tried to concentrate on the comic he was reading, but felt distracted. So far, nothing. He knew she was at Emily's, which meant that Emily was filling her in on all things he didn't want her to know. Why did Sam have to open his big mouth? Serves him right for choosing friends who didn't know the sacred rule of friendship. Never tell the school's gossip anything.

He suddenly heard the front door slam shut and groaned aloud when he heard quick footsteps heading towards his door. She was back. And it sounded like she was on a mission of vengeance. The door was suddenly thrown open as she walked in and angrily glared at him.

"What is your problem?"

"Good evening to you too Case." He muttered, not daring to look up from the comic he was pretending to read.

"Seriously, is it that you just don't care or are you simply idiotic?"

He looked up thoughtfully. "I don't know. Remind me the merits of the first option again?"

"Ugh! You are so frustrating!"

"So people tell me. Now if you're done, feel free to leave." He turned back to his reading material. Casey started walking towards the door, and for a glorious second, he thought that she actually listened to him, at least until she closed the door and turned towards him. "Casey, when people say 'feel free to leave' what they really mean is 'get out, you're bugging me'. So in the interest of not confusing you.. " He glared at her. "Get out, you're bugging me." He turned to the comic.

Casey shook her head in disbelief. "I cant believe you. First you're the jerk of the century, then you turn around and do something so completely stupid."

Derek gave up pretending to read. "You know what? This ranting would make great sense if I knew what you were talking about."

"Emily told me everything."

"That's great." Derek plastered a fake smile on his face. "Now that you know all the fashion trends, leave."

"Not until you tell me what you were thinking."

Derek sighed as he rose from the bed to stand in front of her. "What are you talking about?"

She crossed her arms. "You got into a fight with Matt Watson."

"Tell me something I don't know."

"Over me!"

Derek chuckled. "And why would I do that?"

Casey's eyes softened slightly. "Because, in your own idiotic way, you were sticking up for me."

"Let me get this straight. Even if I did get into a fight for the reason you said, and I'm not saying that I did, you're mad at me why?"

"Because, you're an idiot."

"That makes perfect sense." Derek mumbled sarcastically.

"I don't need saving. I can stick up for myself. I don't need you to get yourself beaten up because of me."

"Woah! Hold it.  _I_  beat  _him_  up."

Casey snorted. "Oh sure, like he didn't hit you back."

Derek crossed his arms over his chest and looked down at her smugly. "You know, if I didn't know any better, I would think that you actually cared about me."

"Don't be silly." She said unconvincingly. "I don't. I just think that you shouldn't be so stupid to punch someone just because they say stuff about me."

"Yeah well, you didn't hear him." Derek muttered to himself as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"What?" Casey asked suspiciously.

"Nothing." He looked at her. "Anything else?"

Casey looked down, as if she was thrown by the question. "Um.. thanks.. by the way. What you did was kind of sweet, even though completely unnecessary." She said softly.

Derek looked at her as he wondered whether to reply back with a cocky remark, but decided against it. "No problem." He said sincerely.

Casey looked up at him, aware that he had just admitted to sticking up for her. Her glance fell on the cut on his lip, still healing as if a constant reminder of how chivalrous he was for her. As if by it's own volition, her finger lightly ran over the cut on his bottom lip. "You don't need to hurt yourself because of me, you know." She whispered, unaware of how this movement was affecting him.

Derek seemed rooted to the spot, unable to think, as he watched her intently. She moved closer to him, and her eyes met his. He stared at her mouth, the need to kiss her overwhelming every part of his being. "I know." He said softly as he leaned forward.

"Derek! Dinner's ready!" George said as he opened his son's bedroom door, but stilled when he noticed the company. "Casey?" He looked at the two older teenagers who seemed to have guilty expressions on their faces. He really hoped they weren't planning a coup.

"George!" Casey exclaimed surprised. "We were just heading down."

George stood to the side to let them both through, but couldn't help throw them a suspicious look. "Why was the door closed?"

"Dad, dad, dad!" Derek shook his head in a disappointed fashion as he clapped his father on the back. "Do you really not trust your own children?"

"Trust  _you_?" George asked perplexed. "Not a chance." He turned towards Casey. "Where are the other three?"

"I didn't see them."

George stifled a groan. "Great! Let the hunt begin. You two go down and help Nora set the table. Tell her I'll be down as soon as I get the three younger ones." And with a sigh, he headed towards Lizzie's room.

Ignoring her step-brother's searching look, Casey started walking down the stairs with Derek at her heels. She was determined to avoid him, at least until she figured out what she had been thinking back there. After all, had she not made herself a promise that she would not be one of Derek's Venturi's girls? Had she not thought of every opportunity to ensure that she hated him? And had she not decided that whatever happens, that she would not, under any circumstances, like him? Why was this so difficult?

\--

"Case, calm down."

"I am calm." Casey said into the phone, although, admittedly, she didn't really sound that calm. "It's not like what nearly happened was a sign or anything, right?"

"A sign?" Emily sounded tired. "Of course it's a sign. It's a sign that he likes you."

"He does not like me."

"Well, I doubt that Derek Venturi goes around making out with girls he doesn't like."

"But that's the thing! I don't want to be one of his girls."

"You want to be his only girl?"

"Yes! I mean no! I mean.. I doubt it would ever work between us."

"Why not?"

"Because he's Derek!"

"Casey." Emily sounded stern. "Stop trying to psych yourself out. You and I both know that Derek is only a playboy when he is  _not_  in a relationship."

"You think that Derek wants to be in a relationship with me?" Casey asked hopefully.

"Yeah, I really do. Now can you please put the phone down and go talk to him? Jump him if you have to."

"Emily!" Casey protested, feeling herself blush. She did not need any memories of their make-out sessions to come to mind right now.

Emily laughed lightly. "Stop over thinking it. Do you want to go out with him?"

Casey stayed silent. "I don't know."

"Well, do you like him?"

"I can't believe I'm about to say this but, I think I do."

"Then you want to go out with him." Emily said knowingly.

"Em! What if we go out, then break up and ruin our family in the process?" Casey asked softly, as if the very thought scared her.

There was silence on the other end for sometime. "Do you think the risk is worth it?" Emily asked her gently.

"I don't know."Casey said truthfully.  _Was_  it worth the risk?

\--

Casey looked up from her book when her bedroom door was thrown open and an agitated Derek walked in. He quickly closed the door and faced her, his demeanor one of complete nervousness.

"Okay, here's the deal. I  _know_ , that I'm generally the guy who plays games when it comes to girls. I mean, I practically invented them right? But there has to be a time when the games must stop. And while I have stopped playing the game, I have a feeling that  _you_  are still playing. And as much as I admire you trying to meet me on my level, I don't think you need to do it since I'm obviously making an effort to meet you on yours. I don't know what we have been doing the past few days. All I know is that I've never been so frustrated in my life the way I have been when it comes to you. Sam, my so called best friend, seems to think that the idea of the two of us could work. I tried to tell him that it was a lost cause. We both know what would happen. I would end up pissing you off, and you would irritate me to no end. We have nothing in common, and this is definitely  _not_  a match made in heaven. So, we should not do this right?" He finished breathlessly.

Casey slowly moved to the edge of her bed as her mind processed what exactly her step-brother had told her. "In other words.." She started slowly before looking up at him. "What do you want?" She asked confused.

"I don't know!" Derek said, a note of frustration in his voice. "That's what I have been telling you, weren't you listening?" He sat on the bed next to her. "This is such a mess." He said tiredly.

"Derek, maybe we are making a big deal out of something that's not." Casey said, keeping in mind Emily's prep talk.

"What?" He asked incredulously. "Woah! Woah! Wait a minute. Let me get this straight. You, Casey Mcdonald, the ultimate freak-out queen is not freaking out about this? Would you like to explain to me  _why_  you don't think that this whole situation is a big deal?"

Casey looked down, suddenly feeling embarrassed. She was trying to follow her best friend's advice, she had no idea that she had to have a reason not to freak out. "Well. if you think about it, it's not a big deal. We are teenagers with hormones, and it's natural to become attracted to someone who is of the opposite sex. And like all attractions, it has to be replaced by something more deep and meaningful at some point. So, all we have to do is ignore this whole thing until that point comes up, and when there's nothing to replace it with, the attraction will die down, and then, we'll go back to hating each other." She hoped that Derek wouldn't notice how she tried to convince herself.

"In other words." Derek imitated her. "You're pretty much freaking out too."

Casey let out an embarrassed laugh. "I'm not a very good liar, am I?"

"Nope. You're pretty much the worst I've met."

"It's not like I need to lie anyway. Unlike someone I know, I don't need to lie to make excuses for not doing my work."

"Hey! I would do my work if it was remotely interesting. Face it Case, our subjects are so  _boring_!"

"It  _would_  be interesting if you paid attention."

"Aren't we going off topic?" Derek added quickly, not feeling up to discussing his academic behaviour.

Casey gave him a suspicious look as if she knew what he was trying to do, but took the bait anyway. "Fine. Shall we start from the beginning then?"

"There's a beginning?"

Casey ignored his remark. "Why did you kiss me?"

Derek groaned. "Are you seriously bringing this up again?"

"Yes, I am. Well?"

"Well what?"

"Derek!" she said sternly.

"Fine! The reason I kissed you was because I felt like it. Happy now?" Derek said focusing on everything but her.

Casey hoped her cheeks weren't reddening. "Okay. So then, where do we go from here?"

Derek shrugged. "Aren't you supposed to be the thinker?"

"This is not easy, you know."

He scoffed. "No kidding."

"Derek!" Casey reprimanded.

"You know what? Screw this!" Derek breathed out before pushing his lips against hers for a short, forceful kiss. Before she could respond, he pulled back and looked right into her eyes. "I like you, you like me. We might as well go out on a date. By the end of the night, if we don't kill each other, I think it'll be safe to go out on another one. And if that goes well, we'll go on another. You okay with that?"

Casey nodded, unable to say anything to counteract his forcefulness. "Finally! She's speechless!" He said before kissing her again, this time his arms brought her closer by circling her waist.

Casey responded for a few seconds before pushing him away from her slightly. "I don't talk that much." She protested.

Derek rolled his eyes. "Of course you do." He tried to capture her mouth with his, but she adequately dodged him.

"I do not! You talk way more than I do."

"Casey!"

"I hardly ever speak! If I do speak it's only because I absolutely have to."

"Casey!"

"And usually I have to, when I have to say anything important."

"Casey!"

"So, I don't think it's fair that you make an assumption that I.."

"CASEY!" Derek practically yelled forcefully.

"What?"

"Shut Up," he said, affection evident in his tone before he pulled her closer to bring her lips against his. Casey gave in. After all, she could always yell at him later.


	11. Chapter 11

For the first time in a long time, Casey McDonald woke up with a smile on her face. Today was going to be a great day. Save for one teensy tiny little thing. The talk she planned between herself and her over-zealous step-brother. They were supposed to talk last night, and needless to say, there was no talking involved. She had to know what they were, how they were going to do it, and where they were going with this. Especially since college was around the corner. She sighed as she headed towards the shower. It was Sunday, which meant that Derek would be sleeping in like always. She had some time to organize her thoughts and maybe come up with an effective way to make him talk. After all, the one thing he wasn't was a talker.

Casey was in the kitchen with her mother discussing a new chore system when she saw him shuffling towards them. Immediately, her eyes snapped downwards as she tried to hide the blush she could feel on her face, since seeing him reminded her of last night. And she still wasn't used to the idea of making out with her arrogant, self-involved, yet utterly sweet and protective step-brother.

"Morning Derek." Nora said cheerfully. "Or should I say afternoon?"

"Nora." Derek nodded at her as he lazily headed towards the refrigerator to look for anything to drink. "Spacey."

Casey's head snapped up at the barely interested greeting he threw at her. What nerve! She could be invisible for all he cared. "Morning  _Derek!_ " She snapped hoping to get his attention. And she wasn't disappointed when he raised his eyebrow at her questioningly before chugging down the orange juice.

Nora looked at the two curiously. "Am I missing something?"

"It's nothing Nora." Derek shrugged. "Case just isn't feeling the whole family vibe thing that you and I have tried so hard to implement into our living situation." He ignored Nora's disbelieving look and focused on Casey. "Am I right?" He winked at her.

Casey felt her cheeks heat up as her fists clenched by her side. Was he trying to piss her off? "Don't you dare wink at me you hypocrite. You are the one who is too lazy to manage anything more than a half-ass-ed greeting in the morning."

"Casey!" Her mother reprimanded. Nora had never known her daughter to swear.

"Sorry Mom. It's just that I think that Derek should learn at least  _some_  basic manners."

Derek chuckled. "Where's the fun in that?"

"This has nothing to do with fun." Casey could feel herself getting riled up. "This is about you trying to say 'Good Morning' like you mean it."

Derek leaned against the counter nonchalantly. "And why would I want to do that?"

"You know why."

He crossed his arms across his chest. "Actually, I don't. Care to explain Ms. Priss?"

Casey's breath came out ragged as she tried to hold herself back so she wouldn't walk the four steps towards him and strangle his neck. Before she could snap at him, Nora spoke up. "Some days it would be nice not to go through the morning fight." She spoke as if she was talking to herself. "I think we're done, Case." Nora said as she stood up and gathered the pieces of paper lying around the counter. "And Derek, use a glass." She said before walking towards the basement.

Casey waited till the door closed before turning around to face her step-brother and give him a piece of her mind. But just as she turned, her lips were met by his. He kissed her fervently as his hands snaked around to her neck and back to hold her in place. She fought her need to kiss him back and pushed him away from her instead. She was supposed to be mad at him. "What?" He asked her confused.

" _What?_ " She imitated incredulously. "Derek! We just had an argument. You cant kiss me every time we fight and expect things to be okay."

Derek smiled down at her as if she was the most adorable thing. "Case, that wasn't a real argument." He took a step forward as he tightened his arms around her.

"It wasn't?" She asked uncertainly.

"Nope." He mumbled as he teasingly whispered against her ear. "I just thought we should keep up the front." He bit her ear gently and smiled when he felt her shiver against him.

Casey was speechless, and not only because of what he said. "Derek!" She meant to say it as a protest but since he pushed himself against her and gently nipped the skin below her ear, her words came out breathy. "We shouldn't do this. Someone might walk in." She grabbed his arms to pull him away, but didn't have the heart to stop him. Especially since his skills were awakening a slight tingly sensation under her skin.

"The three kids are upstairs, Dad is out, and Nora's in the basement. I think we're fine Case." He murmured before he gently kissed her neck, her jaw, and teased her by dropping kisses around her mouth. Casey, grabbed his hair to hold him still and practically bruised his lips as she kissed him hard. Derek responded by pushing her slightly so that she bumped into the counter. Their tongues duelled for dominance as his hands caressed the smooth skin under her shirt. How he dreamed of this. He felt their breathing become ragged as he began kissing her neck. He loved the taste of her skin. She arched against him as a whimper escaped her throat. He pushed himself against her even more in an effort to move closer towards her as his hands began roaming her body. A voice at the back of his mind told him to stop. This wasn't the time or place. But the only problem was that Casey was like an addiction. He just couldn't bear to pull away from her. The voice got louder and louder until finally..

"SMEREK!"

Derek and Casey jumped away from each other, and tried to straighten up their hair and clothes just as Marti rushed into the kitchen.

"Hey Smarti." Derek said innocently. He cleared his throat to rid the huskiness in his voice. "What's up?"

Marti looked suspiciously at the two. "What were you doing?"

"Nothing!" They both replied hurriedly before looking at each other.

"We were just talking." Casey smiled hoping that her flushed face wouldn't give anything away.

"Why are your top buttons undone?" Marti asked her. Casey looked down with a panicked look in her eyes before throwing a glare at Derek. When had he done that?

"She was showing me something Smarti." Derek smirked as Casey started violently buttoning up her top.

"Yup I was." Casey replied, surprising Derek as an evil glint appeared in her eye. "And one day, you will show a boy that same something too."

Derek's smile dropped so fast, it caused Casey to hide a giggle. "Listen Smarti, you should never show a boy  _anything_ , unless I give you the okay. Okay?"

Casey rolled her eyes at how over-protective he was. "Derek! You can't control everything."

"Yes I can."

"No you cant."

"Case, she's my little sister, so yeah, I think I can."

"I think you're over-reacting."

"I don't get it." Marti shot out as she looked at the two older children curiously. She knew they were fighting over her, but she didn't know why.

"It's nothing." Derek shook his head just as he threw a look at Casey which clearly said I'll-get-you-later-and-I'll-enjoy-it, causing Casey to roll her eyes at his juvenile behaviour. Did everything have to involve feeling her up? Not that she was complaining. "So, why'd you call me?" He turned towards his sister.

Marti pouted remembering the reason she searched for her big brother. "Edwin and Lizzie wont let me play the video game with them."

Derek groaned inwardly. He had to stop kissing Casey for  _this_? "Why wont they let you play with them?" He could see Casey lean against the counter as she patiently watched the two siblings. And it didn't help matters when her shirt rode up to expose the smooth skin just above her jeans. He wanted his hands right there.

Marti shrugged. "I don't know."

Derek sighed. Big brother duties called out to him. "Fine. Do you want me to bully Ed 'till he gives the game to you?" He already knew the answer.

"Yes please!" She beamed at him.

"Come on." Throwing an apologetic glance towards Casey, he picked up his sister and started walking towards the stairs. He wanted to finish this off so he could have some alone time with his extremely hot step-sibling.

Casey couldn't help but smile as she saw Derek walk up the stairs with Marti in his arms. Sometimes, he was just  _so_ adorable.

\--

Casey was sitting against the headboard of her bed, reading a book, when Derek walked into her room and locked the door. She raised her eyebrows at him questioningly.

"What?" He asked.

"Are you planning on doing anything in this room that you don't want to get caught for?" She raised her eyebrows at him.

Derek smirked. "You know it." He jumped right next to her on the bed.

"Crisis averted?" Casey asked as she placed a book mark between the pages.

"Kind of. Ed was right not to let Marti play the game. Blood, gore and mutilation is not much of her thing anyways."

Casey scrunched up her face in disgust. "Ew. I can't believe you guys like playing such gross games."

"Hey! It's not only us guys. Lizzie was kicking Ed's ass at it."

"Still.. It's not right for kids to play games that teach violence."

"Casey, it's not violent, it's fun."

She gave him a disbelieving look. "Well I doubt that."

"That's besides the point." He leaned towards her.

"And what's the point?"

"The point is. We are alone, in your room. And no one will interrupt us for quite sometime." He moved his eyebrows suggestively.

Casey's face broke into a wide smile. "You're right! That means we can finally have our talk!" She said gleefully.

"Ca-sey!" Derek groaned. He dropped his head onto her pillow. "That's not what I meant."

Casey giggled. "I know." She leaned over him slightly. "But I really do think that we need this."

"You're paranoid."

"Maybe." She said thoughtfully as she placed her hand on his chest and rested her chin to give him a pleading look. "But I need to."

Derek sighed. "Fine. What do you need to talk about?"

Even though she had been asking for this, she was suddenly uncertain. Derek looked at her questioningly. "Um.. What are we exactly?"

"Well Case, some people might call us homosapiens, but I think.."

Casey slapped him playfully. "That's not what I meant."

Derek chuckled. "Well, aren't we dating?"

"You didn't officially ask me."

Derek rolled his eyes. "Casey McDonald, will you go out with me?"

"I don't know." She replied thoughtfully. "Did you finish your English assignment?"

Derek sighed. "I knew there was a downside to going out with you." Casey smacked him again as she moved to sit up.

"Seriously though, what are we? I mean? Are we just dating? Because we haven't even gone out on our first date yet."

Derek sat up next to her. "You think too much. We are just two people who just happen to enjoy each others company." He paused. "I can't believe I just said that."

Casey chuckled. "It's weird, isn't it?"

"Yeah." He nodded. "Look, I just think we should see how this goes. And I know that this concept maybe a bit tough for you to understand, but don't over think it." He laughed when she smacked him.

"What about mom and George? Are we telling them?"

"No! Absolutely, positively, one hundred percent not." He shook his head violently.

"Why not? They'll understand."

"I don't think so. Case, this is every couple's dream! We can see each other whenever we want with no supervision whatsoever. If we tell Dad and Nora, you can kiss that freedom goodbye."

One thing he said jumped out at her. "We're a couple?" That meant more than dating, didn't it?

Derek looked down embarrassed. "Um.. yeah.. I guess.. I mean.. We.. Um.." He rubbed the back of his neck nervously, and Casey smiled at how uncomfortable he looked. "I'm not planning on seeing anybody else" He said in an attempt to sound casual. "But if you are, then I guess we could work something out." He hoped she wouldn't agree with him.

Casey smiled softly and decided to take pity on him. He was never really good at putting himself out there. "So then, we  _are_  a couple?"

Derek smirked as his confidence returned full force. "Yeah. Pretty much." He moved forward and kissed her, happy that the uncomfortable talk was finally over.

"One more thing." Casey said as she pulled away from Derek, adding to his frustration. "What about school?"

"What  _about_  school?"

"Well, shouldn't they know that you're going out with someone?"

Derek shrugged. "You're right. But then, if one person knows, I'm sure that it wont be long before the whole school, their parents and finally  _our_  parents find out."

"So we tell no one?" Casey asked feeling unsettled by the idea.

Derek saw uncertainty in her eyes. "How about this? I'll tell everyone that I'm dating someone. No one will know it's you, and we could kill two birds with one stone."

"What do you mean?"

"Our parents wont find out, and you wont be hated." He smirked at her.

"You knew about that?" She asked incredulously.

Derek shrugged. "I know everything that happens in the school. I saw how the the girls treated Kendra. But she could handle it because she practically ran the school."

"And because I'm the kltuzy grade grubber, I would pretty much have to face hell." She finished for him bitterly.

Derek shook his head. She was such a drama queen sometimes. "Listen, I've protected your rep before and I'll do it again. Besides, it's only a few weeks more 'till college. You'll survive. And until then.." He kissed her. "We have all the time in the world to have some 'fun'"

Casey rolled her eyes. "You're such a child."

He nuzzled her neck playfully. "Maybe. But admit it, you love bossing me around."

Casey giggled before she pulled him towards her to kiss him passionately. "Maybe."

\--

Edwin looked curiously at his two older siblings. Something wasn't right. They were throwing insults at each other, but they were smiling while doing so. He nudged Lizzie who was sitting at the kitchen counter with him. She looked up at him confused before she followed his glance. Derek and Casey sat at the living room table, a safe distance away from them, while they argued over Derek's unfinished English project.

"Do you notice something different?" Edwin asked his step-sister.

"Yeah." She replied thoughtfully. "Is it me, or are they actually getting along?"

"Getting along? They're arguing!"

"Well, yeah.. But look at them. I think they kind of agree with each other."

Edwin nodded. "Not to mention they  _are_  working together. I never thought that would happen."

Lizzie squinted her eyes at them thoughtfully. "Maybe they're finally getting along because they'll be going off to college soon."

He looked at her incredulously. "Do you really believe that?"

"Not really."

"I think we should investigate this strange phenomenon."

Lizzie rolled her eyes. "Edwin! Just because Casey and Derek are suddenly getting along, well.. sort of, doesn't mean that it's a strange phenomenon." Edwin gave her a disbelieving look. "Okay, maybe it's a  _little_  strange."

At that moment, the phone rang. "Edwin!" Derek called out from the living room which caused Casey to glare at him. Edwin groaned as he slid off the stool and headed towards the cordless phone. He couldn't wait until Derek left for college.

After answering, he walked towards Casey and held out the phone to her. "It's Max." He didn't miss the anxious glance Casey threw his brother or the way Derek's jaw tightened in annoyance, before she grabbed the phone. Edwin slowly backed up towards the kitchen, while making sure that he was close enough to hear the conversation.

"Hey Max!" Casey said brightly. "Um yeah.. Uh huh.. I don't know." She looked at Derek. "I could check. It's no problem really. Sure, you can. Alright then. Bye." She had barely hung up the phone when Derek spoke.

"What did he want?" He  _was_  annoyed.

"He wanted my history notes since he missed a few classes."

"That's all?" There was skepticism in his voice.

"And he wanted to drop by to get them."

"Cant you meet him at school tomorrow?"

Casey shrugged. "That's why he wanted them today. First period is history."

Derek nodded, trying to understand the innocence in the meeting, but failing to do so. "What time is he coming?"

Casey looked up at him skeptically. "Don't you trust me?"

"I trust you, just not him."

"Well, if you trust me, then that's enough." She said sounding stubborn.

"What time is he coming?" He asked again.

"Around six."

"I'll be out with the guys at that time." Derek said thoughtfully. "Very cunning."

"Derek! You cant be serious."

"Casey." He said sternly. "Do we need to have the 'guy' talk again?"

She rolled her eyes. "You are way too protective sometimes."

"Only sometimes." He smirked at her.

"Shall we finish this then?" Casey asked him as she tried to hide her smile. He really did know how to change her mood easily.

As their discussion returned to the project at hand, Edwin shared an understanding look with Lizzie who had joined him near the wall separating the kitchen and the living room. Something was definitely not right.

\--

"You alright?" Max asked Casey, a level of concern evident in his voice.

"Yeah. I'm fine." She spoke perkily. "Everything is just fine. How could everything not be fine? You're here, I'm here. We are both  _friends_ who are having a  _friendly_  conversation."

Max laughed nervously. "Casey, I just told you that I want to get back together with you. I don't think the friend thing would work."

"But, we broke up for a reason." Casey protested.

"Yeah, a reason that I still don't know about." Casey stayed silent. "Come on, cant we just talk about it? You wanted space, and I gave it. If you don't want to get back together, cant you at least tell me why? It's not like there was someone else right?" He chuckled at the mere thought.

Casey was very uncomfortable. "No. Of course not. What a ridiculous idea." She laughed anxiously, as she hoped that Max wouldn't see through her facade.

He studied her for a moment. She didn't seem too truthful about her answer. "Casey, is there someone else?"

"Someone else? What made you think that?" She widened her fake smile. "Max! I just think that we are more suitable as friends, that's all. Don't you feel it?"

"Feel..what?" He asked confused. Sometimes it was hard to keep up.

"The friendship, silly!" Casey practically bobbled her head in glee. "We are more suitable as friends. Don't you feel the understanding and camaraderie between us?" She finished passionately.

Max chuckled. "Yeah, I do."

"Great!" Casey smiled genuinely. "So then.. " She held out her hand. "Friends?"

Max grabbed her hand without hesitation. "Friends." He shook her hand firmly. "Then I guess as friends, you wouldn't mind helping me out?"

"Sure buddy! Anything you need." Casey was feeling extremely generous since the problem was solved. And in record time without having to hear 'I told you so' from Derek.

"Well, I was sort of hoping that.. Um.. You  _were_  going to come with me after all, until we broke up, and the invitation  _is_  for two.." Max noticed how Casey's eyes held a sense of recognition. "And you  _did_  kind of promise them.."

"I forgot all about that." Casey said softly.

"It would mean a lot to them, Case." Max coaxed her.

"I know. It's just.."

"It's nothing big." Max interrupted her. "They just want you to sing one song. But if you cant, I'm sure they'll understand."

"I did promise them, didn't I?" This was definitely a dilemma.

"They  _are_  looking forward to it." Max could see her resolve failing.

"But wont it be weird? With me being your ex and everything?" She asked him worriedly.

"Don't worry about it." Max replied flippantly. "They love you anyway."

"I don't know." Casey said hesitantly. "Are you sure your parents want me?"

"Yeah. They absolutely do. So what do you say?" He urged her.

Casey nodded. "I think I can prepare something. As long as you're sure."

"I'm sure." Max stood up and grabbed his jacket as he headed towards the door. "Shall I pick you up around seven then?"

"Alright. I guess my parents wont mind."

"Thanks a lot Case." Max opened the door and stepped outside.

Casey gave him a small smile. "No problem. What are friends for?"

"Definitely for this." Max chuckled as he held up her history notes.

Casey closed the door and leaned against it as she let out a small sigh. Explaining this to Derek is going to be a bit tricky.

\--

Derek stared at his so-called recently acquired girlfriend who just happen to be his step-sister with a dumbfounded expression on his face. "Let me get this straight. You are going to sing at your ex's grandparents' wedding anniversary as a favour for the parents of that same ex-boyfriend?" His face broke out into a grin. "This is a joke right?"

"Uh.. no?" Casey said as she nervously played with the teddy bear she held in her lap. She looked back at Derek who kept staring at her with a look of complete denial on his face. "It's not a big deal." She tried to convince him.

"Not a big deal? This is.. not a big deal?"

"Yeah." Casey smiled encouragingly.

"We decided that we're a couple a few hours ago, and already, you're going out with another guy. This  _has_  to be a new record."

"Derek! I'm not going out with him. We're just friends."

He looked up in frustration. "Do all of my girlfriends have to go out for a 'friendly' night out with their ex's?"

Casey rolled her eyes at how big of a drama queen he could be. "Like I said.. This.. is..  _not_.. a date."

"Believe me Case, it's a date."

"No it's not. I already promised his parents. And you know me, I cant break my promises."

Derek stood up from Casey's computer chair and began pacing the room, occasionally throwing a glare at Casey who sat silently on her bed. She knew better than to interrupt Derek's train of thought.

Derek finally turned towards her as his mind made a decision. "Alright. This is what we're going to do. You're going to tell your precious Maxy that you're dating someone. Then, he wont hit on you. That is assuming he is as gentlemanly as you say he is. And don't forget to mention how I could knock him out with just one punch." He finished as he puffed out his chest in pride.

"I can't do that." Casey protested ignoring the insult she could have thrown at him.

"And why not?"

"It's too soon."

"Too soon?"

"I broke up with him a few days back, how would it look if I started dating someone before the 'time period' had elapsed?"

"What 'time period'?"

"The appropriate time period needed between relationships to grieve."

Derek looked at her expectantly. She couldn't be serious. "Grieve? Case, no one is dead. You don't need a time period."

"Yes you do. Otherwise it would hurt the other person's feelings."

Derek sighed. "Fine, what's the time period then?"

Casey bit her lip as her mind did the non-existent math. "About three weeks should be fine."

"Three weeks?" Derek asked incredulously. "Where do you get this stuff?"

"Everyone knows about this rule Derek! Not all of us serial date, you know." She finished bitterly.

Her tone got his attention. He sat down next to her as he prepared to act against his better judgment. "One song huh?"

"One song." Casey agreed as she tried to hide her smile.

"Fine. But I'm dropping you there  _and_  picking you up."

"But Max already agreed to do it. And I don't want to bother you."

"You, alone with him in his car bothers me. I'll drop you." He said a note of finality in his voice.

"I'm not property Derek." Casey said sternly.

Derek chuckled. "Exactly why I'm not going to let him try anything on you."

"He wont."

"We'll see about that."

"Why are you making this a big deal?" Casey asked gently. Was he really that hung up with the Sally situation?

"I just don't trust ex-boyfriends." Derek mumbled as he felt embarrassed by his vulnerability.

Casey hugged him then and rested her head in the crook of his neck. "Well, not all ex-boyfriends are the same. Besides, why would I go out with Max, when I could go out with you?"

"Was that a compliment?" Derek questioned with a smirk as he moved his arms around her.

Casey smiled. "Don't get used to it."

Derek chuckled. "I wont."


	12. Chapter 12

"So, what's up with you and Max?" Emily asked curiously as she leaned against her locker.

Casey stopped pulling out the books from her own locker to look at her friend, confused. "What do you mean? We're just friends."

"And Derek doesn't mind that?"

"Why would he mind?"

Emily shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe because Max is your ex, and you're going to be hanging out with him."

"He trusts me, Em."

"Seriously though, don't you think that it's a bit weird that he still wants you to sing? And I don't care what you say Case, he's up to something. I bet he still wants you to go out with him."

Casey shut her locker and faced her best friend. "I know. And I also know that this is a ploy to get me back."

"Okay." Emily was confused. "Then why are you going?"

Casey sighed. She didn't feel like explaining her reasons. "I still feel guilty, Em. I need to do something to make it up to him, even if he doesn't know it. I need to free my conscience."

"But isn't this like a trap or something?"

"Maybe." She nodded. "But I'm ready for it. And please don't tell Derek okay? I don't want him to worry. I can handle this."

Emily suddenly shook her head in disbelief which caused Casey to look at her curiously. "What?"

"It's nothing. It's just.. You're going out with Derek! It's hard to even imagine. Have you guys fought at all?"

"Um.. not really. Things are more relaxed now." An evil glint appeared in her eye. "And I finally have some power over him. Can you believe that I actually managed to get him to help out around the house?"

"Wow! That is huge!"

"I know!" Casey giggled. "And he has been so sweet to me. In his own arrogant self-righteous way. I'm finally starting to see why girls like him so much."

Emily looked at her in disbelief. "I've been trying to tell you that for three years. And you get it only now?"

Casey shrugged. "What can I say? Sometimes I'm a slow learner."

Emily grinned at her. "I guess."

Just at that moment, Casey felt hot breath on the back of her neck, and indication of someone standing very closely behind her. Before she could turn around, that person spoke. "Hello ladies."

Casey smiled as she recognized his voice. "Hello Derek." She vaguely heard a 'hi' from Emily as Derek moved to stand beside both of them.

"And what are you two doing commuting in the halls?"

Casey raised her chin up at him. "Nothing. What are  _you_ doing commuting in the halls?"

Derek smirked at her. "Nothing."

Emily watched the exchange before she let out a laugh. "Oh my God! Are you two flirting? This is way too weird, even for me. I'll talk to you two later." And as fast as her legs could carry her, she left towards their next class. She was going to have nightmares, that's for sure.

Casey glared at Derek. "Did you have to scare away my friend?"

He rolled his eyes. "She wasn't freaked out only by me, Princess."

Casey squared her shoulders as she realized that he was right. She started walking towards class as Derek walked beside her. "You told Sam?"

He nodded. "He took it pretty well. The guy started giving me tips on how to handle you." He ignored the glare she threw at him. "I think we worked our way up to tip number three hundred and fifty seven until he finally had to leave."

"That's way too exaggerated even for you." She said confidently.

"Don't be too sure." He smirked at her.

Casey opened her mouth to retaliate when Derek suddenly grabbed her arm while simultaneously opening a door to his right, and swiftly, he moved the two of them inside the empty classroom before locking the door shut. "Derek!" Before she could protest further, he grabbed her and pushed his lips against hers. Casey responded as she moved closer towards him. He pushed her against the door as his hands fervently studied her curves. Her hand was running through his hair as her other hand relished in the feeling of his strong back under her fingers.

Derek slowly pulled back to study her flushed face. "Ditch school with me."

Casey was suddenly pulled out of her reverie. "What? I don't ditch school and neither should you."

Derek rolled his eyes. "Seriously, that's how you're countering me? Come one. It'll be fun." He said as if tempting her with chocolate.

Casey shook her head. "No. We better move, or else we will be late for class."

He sighed. "Ca-sey! Can you for once, loosen up?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Are you mocking me?"

Derek couldn't hide his grin. "Of course not. Now, shall we leave?"

"Yes, we should leave, and head to class."

Derek dropped his arms from around her and took a few steps back, a look of regret evident on his face. "See, I didn't want to resort to this. But you leave me with no choice." He pulled out several slips of paper from inside his pocket. "Casey McDonald, these are your choices. Either you ditch school with me, and finally do something remotely fun in your life, or.." He paused for dramatic effect. "I'll tell Nora that you got detention for smoking on school property." He smiled evilly.

Casey scoffed. "Like she would believe you."

"She would, if I showed her proof." He threatened.

She was speechless. He wouldn't, would he? "You're bluffing."

Derek smirked, happy that he had received her attention. "In this hand, I hold detention slips. And look at this one." He dramatically pulled out one and began reading out from it. "Looks like you had received detention for smoking on school premises. This one.." He looked at another. "Is detention for drinking alcohol in school premises. And this one.." Another piece of paper. "Ohhh, this is a bad one." He winced. "For 'inappropriate' activities within the school premises." He smirked at her. "Take your pic. Their all legit. All pre-signed by my favourite secretary, Rose, from the office."

Casey, who had felt her jaw drop during his so-called presentation stared at him in disbelief. "You're blackmailing me?"

Derek shrugged. "I wouldn't call it blackmailing. More like.. Giving you slight encouragement."

Casey thought this over. He had to be kidding. He wouldn't be so evil. Besides, he hadn't thought of one little factor which could throw his evil scheme. She stood up straight as her confidence returned. "Wont happen Venturi. You had forgotten one little thing."

His smirk didn't falter. "And what's that?"

"If I ditch school with you, I will end up in detention anyway. So your threat is null and void." She gave him her own smirk.

However, what she didn't expect was for Derek to look even more confident. "Good catch, McDonald. But you're forgetting that I'm always prepared. And in the spirit of that preparation.." He pulled out even more slips of paper. "I introduce to you, dental appointments, family vacations, and family deaths. All signed by my Dad." He grinned at how she looked at him. Because frankly, he found it comical.

"Family deaths?" She managed to croak out.

He shrugged. "Non-existent aunts and uncles."

Casey shook her head in disbelief. "I cant believe that you're doing this."

"Case, how could I not? You and I both know that you're a tough negotiator. This is the only way I can get you to do anything."

"And blackmailing me into skipping school is somehow a good idea?"

He shrugged again. "Seems like it." His face broke into a wide grin. "Why? Is it working?"

"De-rek! I'm not giving into this."

"Fine! Then I'll be handing over your detention slip to Nora." He said nonchalantly.

Casey crossed her arms over her chest. "Fine. Do that. But I wont let you get five feet near me." She threatened.

As expected, Derek's grin faltered to be replaced by a look of horror. "You wouldn't."

She smirked. "Try me."

Angrily, Derek stuffed the slips of paper back into his pockets. "Fine. But I'm not happy about it."

Casey gave him a small smile before she quickly pecked him on the lips to try to lighten his mood. "Thank you." She said sincerely. At least he listened to her in a total offhanded way. "Now shall we go? We're late as it is."

Derek grabbed her arm just as she was about to open the door. "One more thing Princess, I kinda already gave a 'family emergency' excuse to the office."

"De-rek!"

He looked at her innocently. "What? Come on Case, let down your hair a little."

"It  _is_  down." She grabbed her loose hair. "See? Completely loose."

"Case! Play hooky for once in your life, and I promise that I will drop it."

Casey looked at him thoughtfully. "You swear?"

He rolled his eyes. "I pinky swear."

She bit her lip as she weighed the pros and cons of this situation. But since, she was left with no choice, she sighed. "Okay. This one time, I will skip school. But never again."

Derek's grin broadened. "You wont regret it."

\--

Casey shook her head in disbelief as she entered the house with Derek behind her. "How could you not see him?" She asked, placing her jacket on the coat rack.

Derek shrugged out of his own jacket and placed it next to hers. "The guy was asking for it."

She turned to him, perplexed. "He wasn't. You were reckless."

"Excuse me? I'm a great driver."

Casey rolled her eyes. "Sure, exactly why I got my license before you."

Derek's eyes narrowed. "Are you mocking me?" He took a few steps towards her.

Casey started backing away as she automatically put her arms up as if using them as a protective shield. "I wasn't."

Derek kept advancing towards her. "You know, McDonald. Sometimes, you are way to cocky for your own good."

"Derek!" Casey protested. She tried to make a run for it, but within seconds, Derek had grabbed her and thrown her over his shoulder. "De-rek! Let me down!" She screeched as she punched his back. "You are  _such_  a caveman."

"It's a quality I'm sure you love." He teased.

"Er.. what are you guys doing?" Both their heads quickly snapped up to be met by Lizzie's questioning look.

Derek shrugged. "Nothing. Just teaching the kid who's boss."

"As if my mentality is the one that is of a five year olds." Casey scoffed. "Now, could you please put me down?"

"Sure thing, Princess." He winked at Lizzie before dropping Casey unceremoniously onto the couch.

"De-rek!" Casey rubbed her back. "That hurt."

Derek rolled his eyes. "If you weren't such a Princess, it wouldn't have. Now, if you two would excuse me, I have some work to do." And with that parting statement, he dashed up the stairs, smirking as he could picture Casey glaring at the back of his head.

Lizzie quietly sat on the couch next to her sister as she saw her unconsciously watch Derek until he was out of sight. Casey turned to Lizzie, who had a disturbed look graced on her face. "Is something wrong?"

Her little sister shook her head. "Not really. I just wanted to ask you something."

"About what?"

Lizzie ignored the question. "Do you promise to tell the truth?"

Casey felt a doubt rise within her. Surely her sister hasn't found out. "Sure, Liz. What's up?"

Lizzie took a deep breath in an effort to get some courage. "Edwin and I sort of saw you and Derek.." She trailed off at a loss for words.

Casey began to feel her heart race in panic. "I'm sure that whatever you saw, wasn't what you think it was, Liz. We were just hugging or something."

Lizzie looked at her suspiciously. "But you and Derek never hug."

"Well, um.. Thing's change." Casey stood up. "It was hugging, nothing else okay?" She said anxiously. She waited until Lizzie nodded in understanding before dashing up the stairs herself.

Just as Casey was out of sight, Edwin entered from the kitchen. "I think you're right."

Lizzie rolled her eyes. "Of course I am."

Edwin sat down on the couch beside his step-sister as he stared ahead in disbelief. "Derek and  _Casey_." He shivered. "That's weird."

"I know. Now all we need is proof."

"I thought she practically admitted it."

"Not really." Lizzie said thoughtfully. "She just acted really uncomfortable. So we know for sure that they are upto something. But we don't know  _exactly_  what."

"What do you mean by 'exactly'?"

"I mean, we don't know if they're really together. So, we need proof."

"You got an idea?"

"Maybe." Lizzie smiled mischievously.

Edwin smirked. "Then let's get to it."

\--

Casey looked around the kitchen. Everything seemed to be in place. Dinner was a success, she couldn't believe how well that recipe turned out. Smiling to herself, she walked towards the living room to be met by the image of Derek lying across the couch, his arms behind his head and his eyes closed. She shook her head in amusement. She just asked him to put away the dishes. How could he act so tired after  _that_? "You up?" She nudged his leg lightly with her knee.

Derek opened one eye at her before resuming his previous pose. "Not really. That work was brutal."

"What work?" She asked him incredulously. "I did most of it."

"That may be." He replied smoothly. "But you have forgotten one factor. I, the man of this house is not used to such trivial activities unlike you. So, naturally, any work is taxing."

Casey decided to grab a pillow and smack him on the head as a 'response' to his woes. But just as she got ready to strike him, Derek's eyes flew open as he grabbed her wrist, and in one swift movement, brought her down on top of him.

"Nice of you to join me, Ms.McDonald." Derek said as he grabbed the cushion and tossed it over the back of the couch. His arms circled around her as he held her to him.

Casey giggled. "It wasn't my choice."

He looked at her with mock-hurt. "Now that is disappointing."

"Is it now?"

"I was under the impression that playing hooky would broaden your horizons."

"Oh, consider my horizons broadened." She smirked.

"Good. And admit it, you had fun today."

"You're right. But it's never going to happen again."

Derek groaned. "You always have to ruin my fun."

Casey giggled as she kissed him gently. Derek kissed her back as his arms tightened around her. Just as he deepened the kiss, she pulled back. "We shouldn't do this here. The fam' might walk in."

"Relax Case, they wont be back for another.." He squinted at him watch. "Half an hour, we have  _plenty_  of time." He kissed her, but she pulled away again.

"To bad we had to miss Marti's dance recital."

"I know." He nodded. "But what could we do? Both our practices finished only an hour ago."

"Hm.." Casey nodded just as Derek pulled her in for another kiss. This time, she allowed him to deepen the kiss, as she straddled him to allow herself to be more comfortable. His hands gently kneading her to him, as he played with her skin and expertly unbuttoned her shirt. Their kisses was used as a means to explore the other. Her hands creeped under his shirt to lovingly caress his toned stomach. Casey let out a moan as their kisses became heated and they both felt the familiar need rise within them. His actions caused an unbearable pleasure that she knew had to be satisfied. She grinded herself against him causing him to groan in response. The woman sure knew how to drive him to the brink of insanity, he thought as he kissed her back ardently. Derek smirked against her neck. "How about we go upstairs?" His voice was deep and husky in anticipation of the act to come.

Casey felt herself involuntarily stiffen as his meaning became clear. He noticed. "No, I don't think that's a good idea." She smiled softly to reassure him as she tried to pry herself away.

But Derek's arms wouldn't let her go. "Come on, it'll be..'fun'." He knew she couldn't miss his hidden meaning.

"I know.." Derek gently nipped her neck as his fingers tangled in her hair. "But our parents could walk in at any minute and.." Her spine was tingling. "And.." Casey tried to concentrate on what she tried to say. "And.. It's not the time." Her eyes closed as she gave in to the sensations of her body. "And, someone could walk in." She felt his hand slowly move up her thigh, coming dangerously close. "Derek!" She protested, her mind failing to come up with a proper sentence. His hand met their destination causing her to arch against him. "We shouldn't." Her objection was barely a whisper.

"Come on, Case. You know you want to." His tone teased her as he swiftly unbuttoned her jeans.

"DEREK!" "CASEY!"

Their heads snapped up to see the bewildered expressions of their parents staring at them from the recently opened doorway. George had simply frozen on the spot as Nora's eyes bugged out almost comically. Finding your daughter in a state of undress straddling her step-brother is not something she could have foreseen as a possibility. With impressive speed, both teenagers leaped off the couch and stood before their parents. Casey, feeling herself blush uncontrollably, began buttoning her shirt as Derek cleared his throat uncomfortably.

"What that was.. what we were doing.. It's not what you think. We can explain." He started laughing nervously. "It's a pretty funny story really." He turned to his step-sister. "Case, you wanna tell them what happened?" His mind was blank. And his parents just standing there wasn't helping.

But Casey just stared back at him, and he knew that no matter what spin they tried to put on what happened, they had been caught red handed. George seemed to be gradually getting some colour back in his face. After all, he had walked in on Derek several times with girls. That wasn't new. What was new was the fact that this time, his step-daughter was the person on top of his son. A smart girl who, in his eyes, is his daughter. "Derek..I.. you .." He sputtered. "What were you THINKING?" He yelled the first question that appeared in his frozen mind.

Derek visibly winced. He knew that his father yelled only if his anger was beyond breaking point. "Dad.."

"Uh huh." George interrupted him. "How are you going to get yourself out of this one? Whatever excuse you're thinking up, I can tell you now that it better be a damn good one."

Derek quickly glanced at Casey to see how she was holding up. This was really bad. His father never swore. Casey was hugging herself in a protective gesture, and looking at the floor with embarrassment. Nora on the other hand had fallen limply on the closest chair as she felt her knees give way. She vacantly stared at the teenagers in disbelief. Derek cleared his throat again in an effort to try to reduce the tension.

"I know this looks bad.."

"Bad?" George interrupted him again. "This is no where near bad. This is unacceptable."

"What's unacceptable?" The four of them turned towards the door to see the rest of the family enter and casually take in the scene. The three younger siblings could easily see that Derek had done something wrong, and in their opinion, that was normal. But their curiosity was piqued when they saw that Casey seemed to be in the same situation. "Well? What's unacceptable?" Edwin repeated. He wondered why they all looked like they didn't know what to say.

"What's going on?" Lizzie asked curiously.

George took a breath to calm his nerves. "Edwin, you and Lizzie put Marti to bed and stay in your rooms, alright? We need to have a little  _talk_  with these two." He spoke through clenched teeth which caused Edwin and Lizzie to give each other a quizzical look.

Marti looked at her father curiously. "Why do I need to go to sleep now? It's early!"

"Not now Marti." George mumbled, sounding tired. "Edwin." He gave his son a meaningful look which he successfully interpreted.

"Come on, Liz." And grabbing a confused Lizzie and a protesting Marti they headed up the stairs, with the full intention of doing half of what George wanted them to do.

"Okay." George said in an effort to sound rational. "Maybe you two could tell me, for starters, that you weren't going to do, what I think you were about to do on our couch." He stared both of them down, and the guilty faces that faced him, did nothing to improve his mood. "What were you thinking? What were you  _both_  thinking?" He turned to his step-daughter. "Casey, I thought you were smarter than this. And Derek.." He shook his head. "How can you be so STUPID?"

"Dad.."

"Are you  _trying_ to get us mad? Is this a new ploy that you came up with to somehow get back at us for holding up the Prince when you got suspended? How could you take advantage of her like that?" He knew his son was a dog, which until now, he thought it was a trait that could be ignored.

"It's not like that." A small voice interrupted him.

He turned to Casey. "What?"

"It's not like that." She repeated, sounding braver than how she felt. "He wasn't taking advantage of me."

"Yeah well, I think that's hardly the point now, isn't it?" George snapped, agitated.

"George." Nora said as she stood up slowly. "Can I talk to Casey privately?"

He looked between his wife, his son and his step-daughter and sighed in hopelessness. "Okay." He threw Nora an understanding look. Turning to Derek, he glared. "And you. Upstairs. Your room. Now!" Without waiting for an answer he stomped up the stairs, determined to hold on to his anger for as long as possible.

Derek and Casey shared a worried look before he squared his shoulders in an effort to look confident, and followed his father up the stairs. Even though, his first impulse was to dash out of the house and suffer the consequences later. After they left, mother and daughter watched each other for some time. Neither knew what to say or how to tackle the situation. It was Nora who couldn't stand the silence any longer.

"I think we need some camomile tea, don't you?" She hurried into the kitchen, and wasn't disappointed when her daughter cautiously followed her.

Nora moved around the kitchen nervously. She concentrated on everything but her daughter. Mumbling to herself on how kids hardly ever do their chores, she forgot her current assignment, and started scrubbing the kitchen instead. Casey slowly sat down at the island and watched her mother as she hastily went about the kitchen to get the tea ready. She waited patiently, not keen to bring up the topic that they had to ultimately discuss. The silence stretched to an unbearable extent until finally, Casey spoke. "Mom!"

Nora jumped as if she had temporarily forgotten that her daughter was in the room with her. Keeping her back to her, she took a deep breath and decided to hell with it. She tossed the sponge, and turned to face her.

"I don't know what to say. I literally, don't know what to say." Nora saw her daughter look down in shame.

"I know, Mom. I didn't want you to find out that way."

Nora felt her heart drop at that sentence. "You mean.. you and  _Derek_? This is not just a one time thing?" She asked incredulously.

Casey shook her head slowly.

"Oh my God!" Nora breathed out as she sat at the counter opposite her daughter. "Casey, how could you not tell me? I know I'm your mother, but I thought we were also friends."

"I know. It's just that, I didn't know how to tell you."

"You know you could tell me anything."

Casey smiled gratefully. "I know, Mom."

"Good. Then you wont mind telling me for how long you have been.." Nora motioned with her hands, unable to think that her daughter was having those sorts of 'relations' just yet. She hoped that she would start after she was dead and buried.

"What?" Casey asked confused.

"You know.." Nora twitched. This was really uncomfortable. She hadn't had the 'talk' with her yet, either.

"Mom.. I don't.." Casey said, still confused as she watched her mother gesture. Suddenly something clicked in her mind, and her eyes widened. "No! Mom! We're not.. I'm not.." She exclaimed feeling her cheeks become red from embarrassment.

Nora didn't bother to conceal her relief as she silently sent out a little prayer. "Well, don't ever do that, okay? EVER!"

"Mom, that's a bit unreasonable don't you think?"

"No Case, what's unreasonable is walking in on you and Derek like that. I hope you realize that it could have been a lot worse. It could have been Lizzie and Edwin who walked in and not us. How would you explain it to them? Or even Marti?"

"I didn't think of that." Casey mumbled.

"Casey.." Nora shook her head. "I just cant believe that I'm having this talk with you. You and Derek have always fought, I never pictured the two of you doing anything but fighting for the rest of your lives. I could see myself ten years from now trying to stop you from killing him because of some stupid prank that he would have done. The two of you are not, well.. compatible." Casey was about to say something, but Nora beat her to it. "You're not on the rebound from Max are you?"

"Max? How did you know about Max?"

"Edwin and Lizzie. You cant really hide much from them." Nora looked at her daughter. "Is this serious?"

Casey felt offended. "Of course, Mom. You know that I would never have a fling."

"I know honey. But Derek's different." She said thoughtfully.

"Why aren't you yelling at me?" Casey asked meekly. She didn't want to remind her mother that she had a right to yell, but at the same time, she wanted to understand what was going through her mind.

"Believe me Casey, I want to yell. But I'm not going to. At least not until you tell me how this all happened. I'm just happy that you didn't do something that you would regret."

Casey nodded. "I would never do anything unless I wanted to."

Nora shared a small smile. "I know. That's one of your good qualities." She sighed. "Now could you please help me to understand how this whole thing with Derek happened?"

\--

Derek silently sat on his bed as he watched his father pace back and forth in his room. He didn't dare make a noise for fear of getting yelled at. Part of his mind wondered how everything with Casey and Nora was going downstairs. They probably yelled at each other, then cried their apologies and hugged for good measure. At times like this, he wished he was like that.

George finally stopped pacing and turned towards his son. "When?"

Derek understood. "Few days back."

George nodded. "Bet?" He asked hopefully.

Derek shook his head. "Nope."

He nodded again. "Blackmail?"

"Nope." Derek repeated.

George continued to nod as if he understood the situation. "Okay then, why?"

Derek shrugged. "Why did you and Nora get together?"

George stared at his son incredulously. "You're comparing us? This is  _not_  the same thing."

"Isn't it?" Derek asked, appearing unfazed by his father's lack of patience. "We have fun."

"Fun? FUN? This is NOT FUN! This is Nora's daughter, my step-daughter, YOUR step-sister."

"I know, Dad."

"Then, how is this FUN? You know Derek, I have let you slide on a lot of things. I know about the serial dating, and I know about the late night visits with girls." George smiled acidly at his son's bewildered look. "You thought I didn't know? Of course I know. You are not ready for a serious relationship. And if you get involved with Casey, it better be. I don't want this family broken up because of some 'fun'."

"It could be serious." Derek countered.

"I highly doubt that." George breathed out tiredly.

"Dad." Derek started slowly. "Calm down. I think you're over-reacting."

George glared at his son. "Don't tell me to calm down. I'll calm down when I want to calm down."

"Dad! Listen to yourself. Of course Case and I are not that serious, we just started dating a few days ago. Shouldn't we be given the chance to see if it goes somewhere?"

"It's not that simple. Your break-up could ruin this family." He sighed. "I'm not ready for another divorce."

Derek's jaw tightened. "How do you know that we  _will_  break-up."

His father laughed bitterly. "What are you two? Seventeen? It's one in a hundred couples who end up together."

"Yeah well, we could be that one in a hundred."

"I thought it wasn't serious."

"It's not."

"Then why are you fighting me on it? For once, just do what I ask, Derek. My marriage could be on the line here." His father pleaded.

Derek looked down. He didn't know why he was fighting. Maybe he was stubborn. Maybe he wanted to uphold his right to date whoever he wanted. Maybe it was because he could picture her downstairs fighting for their right to see each other, and he didn't want to disappoint her. He didn't want to admit it, but when he really thought about it, he doubted whether she would be the one he ended up with. She wasn't like him. They hardly had anything in common.They sometimes fought over nothing. He could never picture himself with her, and to this day, he still couldn't. But whatever the reason, he didn't want to stop.

"Dad! I care about her, alright? And I'm assuming that when she doesn't feel the need to kill me, that she cares about me too. And we're going off to college soon. We'll be out of your and Nora's hair, and the two of you can pretend like it never happened."

"You're planning on continuing this in college?" George asked doubtfully.

Derek rolled his eyes. "Of course we are. We're only twenty minutes away."

"But, what about other girls?"

Derek shrugged. "We're exclusive, so I guess, that's not in the equation."

"You're exclusive? But I thought you started dating a few days ago."

"Yeah.." Derek tried to sound nonchalant since he was suffering from embarrassment. "We're exclusive."

"Casey's idea?" George asked knowingly.

He could lie, and save his rep in his father's eyes, or he could tell the truth and show how serious he was taking their relationship. "Mine." He mumbled. Derek felt his embarrassment increase ten fold at his father's expression. It looked like he had managed to make his father speechless twice in one day.He was on a roll.

"Well, okay then." George looked at the door regretfully. "I better go check on Nora. She's probably a wreck. We will finish our discussion later." He threatened as he opened the door. Before he left, he turned to his son. "And Derek, I'm not saying that I approve of this, but don't mess this up." With that, he left.

Derek stared after his father for a while, not completely sure if he could do what was asked. "Sure." He mumbled to himself before falling down on his bed. He had a bad feeling that he will mess it up.


	13. Chapter 13

Nora stood against the doorway of their basement bedroom and watched her husband silently. "Hey."

George looked up from where he was sitting on the bed to look at her briefly. "Hey." He sounded tired to his own ears.

Walking to the bed, she sat behind him and began gently kneading his back. "How did it go?"

George shook his head. "I yelled and he listened, so pretty well I guess. You?"

"We talked. I think I keep forgetting what an adult she's becoming." Her voice held a hint of regret.

He made a disbelieving noise. "Adults, both of them. I think this is the first time that Derek and I have had a remotely civil conversation."

"That's progress." She encouraged.

"Yeah." George said thoughtfully. "What should we do?"

Nora sighed. "I don't know."

George stood up and resumed pacing the room as his wife watched patiently. "Why cant they have a fool-proof parental manual for hormone driven teenagers? That would make life so much more easier."

Nora chuckled. "But wont life be boring then?"

"I would take boredom over this any day." He mumbled.

"What did Derek say?" She asked curiously.

"Basically that they want to go out, and we could forget that the whole thing happened once they go off to college."

Nora smiled. "I don't think we'll forget that easily."

His pace increased. "Why don't they get it? If their relationship fails, which according to statistics there's a huge possibility that it will, this family which we worked so hard to put together will be in ruins?"

"Georgie! Come on!" Nora laughed lightly. "Aren't you over-reacting just a bit?"

George stopped pacing to stare at his wife. "That's what he said."

"Why do you think that this family will collapse if they break up? Aren't we stronger than that?"

George looked at his wife uncertainly. He wasn't sure if this was the time to share his doubts. "I don't know. You know how it is. People break up, and suddenly, everything is split in two. What if they have a really bad break up, Nora? Who will you side with?" She opened her mouth to reply, but he cut her off. "Casey, obviously. Just like how I will side with Derek. It's a parental mechanism. You don't want your kid hurting, so you support them."

"We can work through it. We are both open minded, relatively unbiased people. We can try to hear the other person's point of view, voice our own and respectfully agree to disagree." She was always the optimistic one.

"That will be really difficult, especially since I have a bad feeling that if they do beak-up it will be because of something that my son did."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"I'll feel obligated to protect him from you and Casey." He said tiredly.

Nora and George let out a small chuckle at the idea of Derek needing protection. "I think we can handle it George."

"But what about Lizzie and Edwin? You know how they side with their siblings." Nora looked down thoughtfully. "Face it, Nora. Our family is still pretty much split in two, and if Derek and Casey date, then break-up, we'll be split further." Nora was about to say something, but he beat her to it again. "And you and I both know that if these two fight long and loud over a  _remote_ , over a relationship, it's going to get ugly. They are going to break stuff." He threatened referring to their habit of destroying personal property.

Nora sighed, realizing that her husband was right. "But what could we do?"

"I don't know. I told Derek that if they're going to get together, it should be serious."

"But George! They're still teenagers." Nora protested. "They are way to young to take this seriously."

"Exactly!" He exclaimed, happy that his wife has finally understood him. "This relationship has a lot riding on it. Which means that they shouldn't be doing this unless they are willing to do anything to keep it a float. But they're too young. So they shouldn't go out yet, because they are not ready to handle a proper adult relationship."

"Maybe I'm being the optimistic one here, but maybe we should let this thing run it's course. Who knows? They could make it. We've seen weirder couples who have lasted longer."

George shook his head. "Nora, you know I'm not a believer of early relationships. Look at Abby and I. We were the whole childhood sweethearts who got married straight out from college."

"Yes, but George. You and Abby are finally working together. You have both learned to forgive and forget."

"But not before the yelling, the screaming and the custody battle." He pointed out.

Nora stayed silent. Her husband was right. Maybe this was too serious for them to handle. After all, her first marriage was also a failure. "So, what do we do now?"

"I wish I knew." He said as he sat on the bed tiredly. "And I also wish we didn't walk in on them." He shuddered slightly.

"I don't think this would have been such a huge problem for us if it weren't for the visuals to go with the concept."

"Visuals which I rather not think about." George agreed.

"At least they're exclusive." That's a consolation.

George let out a light laugh. "That was Derek's idea."

Nora looked at him, surprised. "Derek?  _Derek_  wanted to be exclusive? I thought it was Casey."

"So did I."

"That changes things."

"How?"

"It just shows that Derek is putting as much effort into this relationship as Casey."

"But we don't know if that's enough."

"But we  _do_  know that it's more than what he normally puts in." Nora countered.

George nodded in agreement. "We have to give them our answer soon." He muttered.

"I think, we should sleep on it." Nora said as she gave her husband a quick peck on the cheek and headed towards their bathroom. What would responsible, fair, parents do in this situation?

\--

"You heard?"

Lizzie whipped around to face Edwin who quietly entered her room and closed the door. "How could I not? George is a very accomplished yell-er."

"Do you think it's bad?" He said as he walked over and sat on her bed.

Lizzie shrugged as she moved to the edge to sit next to him. "It could be. But I doubt it."

"How do you know?"

"Mom will diffuse George. She's very much the 'do-it-if-your-heart-is-in-it' sort of person."

"And Dad's the 'don't-do-it-if-you-are-going-to-lose' sort of a person."

"A match made in heaven." Lizzie quipped.

"Too bad we couldn't put your plan into action. It would have been far more entertaining."

"And Mom and George would not have found out."

Edwin shrugged. "At least they're leaving. They can do whatever they want."

"Including dating each other."

"That's still weird."

"Way weird."

His eyes widened. "If they get married, we'll be In-laws!"

Lizzie rolled her eyes. "They're not going to get married."

"Why not?"

"Because they're Derek and Casey."

"So?"

"So, they will fight so much that they probably wont even last six months."

"You think they wont last six months?"

She saw the look in his eyes, but took the bait anyway. She was confident. "Of course. Every relationship is the same. The first three months, it's new and exciting. But by the time they hit month number six, everything comes out."

"Okay then  _Sis_ , how about we bet on it?"

"Alright  _Bro,_ lets. What's the collateral?"

"All my current savings, for your new laptop."

"No way! I will let you use my laptop for a week."

"You will let me use your laptop, whenever I want, no questions asked, for a month."

"For your  _current_  savings? That's not a fair trade."

"And what is?"

Lizzie squinted at him. "I want all your current savings  _and_ all the money you will collect by the end of the bet."

"Fine. Then the bet for six months is on." He was going to win.

"It's a deal." Lizzie beamed as they shook on it.

\--

Derek walked into Casey's bedroom. "That went well." He muttered as he closed her bedroom door.

Casey, who had been trying to concentrate on her homework, closed the book in defeat. "Yeah, and that was not how I pictured telling them."

"I didn't picture telling them at all." Derek commented as he sat next to her on the bed.

Casey sighed. "Do you think they'll forbid us from seeing each other?"

"I doubt it. They both know that I never listen to them."

"But they know that I will."

"A trait we have to work on." He smirked as she playfully smacked him.

"What if they forbid us from seeing each other? Then we fight them? Then George sends for your mother, and Mom sends for my father? What if they try to do an intervention with us? Or even try to pack you off to military school? What if they threaten to cut us off if we don't listen to them, and as a result, we'll have to apply for in school housing since we only got scholarships without any residential financial help?" Casey finished breathlessly.

Derek stared at her as if she was a growing a third eye right in front of him. "Casey" He said slowly. "First of all, that's a lot of 'what if's. And secondly, I lost you after military school."

"Derek! This is serious." She whined.

"Yeah Case, I got that. But could you keep in mind that over-reacting is not needed in this situation? Just don't panic."

"DON'T PANIC? Of course I'm going to  _panic._  Not panicking is  _not_  an option. Our parents walked in on us while we were making out! How could I not panic?"

He smirked. "Their faces were pretty classic, huh?"

Casey looked at him, shocked. "How can you joke at a time like this?"

He shrugged. "It's easy. How could you  _not_  joke at a time like this?"

"I'm sorry, but do you really find this whole messed up situation funny?" She said through gritted teeth.

Derek briefly thought that it was better to keep his mouth shut. But as usual, he didn't follow his own advice. "You seriously don't find this funny?" When she continued to glare at him, he thought of changing his tactic. "Look, Dad and Nora are upset now. But they'll get over it. They just need sometime to get used to the idea."

Casey's glare faltered as she considered his words. "I guess you're right."

"Of course I am."

"Please, don't be so modest." Casey said sarcastically as she rolled her eyes., which caused Derek to chuckle.

"By the way, did you finish our history homework yet?" He asked casually.

She eyed him suspiciously. "Yeah..why?"

He shrugged. "No reason, just wanted to compare our answers to make sure that I haven't missed anything."

"Really?" Casey's eyes narrowed.

"Yeah.. really." He said nonchalantly.

"Derek, I'm not letting you copy my answers."

He looked at her with mock-hurt. "I'm offended. Did you really think that I was such a person to steal your answers which you obviously worked so hard to perfect?"

"Yup, I do."

"You don't know me at all." He practically sniffled.

Casey giggled at his acting ability. "But, I  _can_  check your homework if you want."

Derek leaned against her bed casually, the drama forgotten. "No point. Haven't done it yet."

"Derek! It's due tomorrow. Go! Now!" She motioned towards his door.

"Fine! Geez, you're bossy." He made a move to stand up when she grabbed his arm to hold him back.

"Thanks for being so great about this whole thing and trying to distract me."

Derek smirked. He really couldn't hide anything from her. "You're welcome." With a quick parting kiss, which he tried to lengthen but was hindered by Casey, who reminded him of his homework, he left her room.

As he entered his room, he grabbed the cordless phone and dialed. "Hello?"

"Dude! You got a minute?" Derek questioned as he jumped on his bed.

"Um.. Yeah D, what's up?" His best friend could sense his nervousness.

Derek cut to the chase. "Dad and Nora found out."

"Shit! How did they take it?"

"As expected. Yelled a bit, or in Nora's case, talked a bit."

"So, not that bad?" Sam asked, fishing for details.

"Don't think so. I'm sure they'll cool off."

"That's great. Then what's bugging you?"

Looked like he couldn't hide anything from Sam either. "Do you think this whole thing with Case and I are too serious?" He said cautiously.

"What do you mean?" Sam asked confused.

"I mean.. " Derek stopped. What  _did_  he mean? "I mean, do you think the fact that we are going out is a big deal?"

"Yeah, I guess. Why?"

Derek groaned. "I was afraid of that."

"Dude! In English please?"

He sighed. "Dad seems to think that.."

"What?"

"He seems to think that us going out may not be the greatest idea."

"Okay. But that was expected, right?"

"Yeah. It's the reason that bugs me."

"And what's the reason."

"He thinks that if Case and I break up that it would cause problems for our family. Don't you think that that is the most completely ridiculous idea ever or what?" Derek expected his best friend to agree. But what he didn't expect, was for Sam to stay silent. "Sam?"

"I hate to say it, but I think he has a pretty good point."

"What?" Derek asked, feeling disheartened.

Sam could hear it in his voice. "Any break-up is bad. You have to expect a rift to form."

"But Kendra and I are friends. And so are you and Case." Derek countered.

"And what about you and Sally?"

"That's different."

"How?"

"She left me for her ex."

"Which is a form of break-up."

"So then, am I suppose to break-up with Case then? Just because there is a chance that we could have a bad break-up in the future?"

"No! Of course not. I'm just saying that your Dad has a point."

"And what do you suggest that I do with that 'point'?" Derek asked sarcastically.

"I suggest that you ignore it."

"Ignore it?" Sam was on his side again?

"Yeah. Listen D, you cant not go out with a person because you're afraid of breaking up. It's the same as thinking that you shouldn't drive for fear of getting into a car accident. If you think she's worth the risk, then go out with her."

"You're right." He never thought of it like that.

Sam chuckled. "I'm never wrong."

Derek rolled his eyes. "Yeah..yeah.." Since when did his ego land on his best bud?

"So, she's worth it, right?"

Derek stilled. That's what he had to figure out.

\--

"So, um.. I'll see you later?" Derek asked awkwardly.

"Yeah, later." Casey's smile was forced.

Emily stared as her friend watched her boyfriend walk away. She had been ignoring this for a few days at Casey's request, but maybe it's time to re-visit that conversation. "Still the same huh?"

Her voice seemed to break Casey's trance. "What?"

"Derek! It's still weird?"

Casey shut her locker, having taken out her books. "I don't know what's gotten into him. After Mom and George found out, he became kind of.. distant." She muttered sadly.

"Maybe it's time you guys talked about this."

"I tried. But every time I bring it up, he shuts me out. I really don't know what else to do."

Emily could hear the desperation in her best friend's voice. "I know. But this has gone on for nearly a week. I think it's time that you handcuff him and force him to explain."

"You and I both know that wont work. He wont talk unless he wants to."

"I just don't get it. Your parents are okay with you two dating, right? Why is he so out of it?" Emily questioned more to herself.

"I don't know." Casey said sadly. "I wish I knew what goes on in his head."

"Maybe it's time to stop wishing, and act. You cant go on like this."

She bit her lip nervously. "You're right. I'll bring it up soon."

Emily smiled encouragingly. "And if you need anything, you know that I'm here, right?"

Casey returned the smile. "Yeah, I know."

\--

"Hey." Casey said as she walked into Derek's bedroom and closed the door.

"Hey." He replied from where he sat at the computer desk. "What's up?"

Casey looked around uncomfortably before settling down on his bed. "Can we talk?"

Derek didn't like her tone. "Yeah." He turned to face her. "What did you want to talk about?"

"Um.." She started fidgeting with her fingers. "I couldn't help but notice that since of late, you have been acting kind of weird."

His eyes narrowed. "Weird?"

Casey's nervousness increased. What if he took what she was about to say, the wrong way? "Yeah, weird. You have been distant lately, and I just want to know why. Is it something to do with hockey, or school, or maybe Sam? Or us?" She finished meekly.

Recognition flashed in his eyes. "Don't worry, I'll handle it."

"Handle what?"

He shrugged. "Whatever is bothering me, I'll handle it."

Casey didn't know what to say to that. "But, we're going out. Don't you feel comfortable around me, to discuss whatever is bothering you?"

She had just unintentionally put him in a corner. "We make out. I think, we're comfortable with each other." He joked in an effort to avoid a really uncomfortable conversation.

But Casey stared at him. "You're not ready to share anything with me, are you?"

Derek knew where this was going, and he felt unable to stop it. "Case, I think you're making a big deal out of nothing."

"This  _is_  a big deal. Apparently my  _boyfriend_  doesn't trust me." Casey said as she felt anger rise within her.

Derek felt a jolt of anger as well. This was getting out of hand. "You know that I'm not great with feelings and stuff. "

"Oh, so that's the excuse not to talk to me?"

"I AM talking to you." He replied in frustration.

"Not about anything important!" Casey jumped up, as she felt restlessness overtake her. "I'm not like Kendra or Sally. I want to be part of your life. I want you to be able to tell me anything. You're dreams, your fears, your hopes. Everything! Why is that so hard?"

"It's not." Derek shot up. "But you're making it. Why does everything have to be according to a time limit with you? I'll share when I want to share."

"But you may never share." She protested.

"Well then. That's my decision, now isn't it?"

"I can't believe it!" Casey whispered. "I'm literally going out with a brick wall."

"And apparently I'm going out with a psychologist."

Her eyes narrowed at his statement. "Are we even partners in this relationship or am I just a girl you want to spend some time with before going off to college?"

"Why does it have to be one or the other?" Derek asked, outraged. "Why is it that when people find out that we're going out, it's suddenly a big deal? It's  _not_  a big deal. It's not supposed to be a big deal."

"What people?" She questioned, confused.

"EVERYONE! Dad and Nora, Sam and Emily, even Ed and Liz."

"They know about this?" Her eyes widened.

"Yeah. Ed fed me a really touching speech on how I shouldn't ruin something that is obviously a good thing. I don't get it. Why is  _everyone_  bothered about us?"

"Maybe it's because they care."

"Well, bugging me continuously by telling me not to act stupid is really getting on my nerves."

"Is that it? You're worried about what people keep telling you? Why didn't you tell me?"

"Like I told you, it's my problem, and I'll handle it."

"You don't have to be alone in everything you know."

Derek sighed. "Case, this was supposed to be easy. But lately.. it's been hard."

"Why?" She asked softly.

"I don't know. I guess it's the fact that Dad told me not to mess this up, while Nora seems to feel the need to constantly give me her approval. Sam suggesting that we should tell everyone in school, while Emily is giving me ideas for what to buy you for our month-a-versaries. Ed telling me that I would never be able to do better than you, while Liz threatens to kick my ass if I ever hurt you. It's just..getting..too much."

Casey stared at him. "I had no idea, Derek. You should have told me. But why haven't they said anything to me?" She asked, voicing her curiosity.

Derek shrugged before sitting on his bed. "I guess you could do no wrong in their eyes."

"But I'm far from perfect. I'm a freak-out queen, remember?" She said as she sat next to him.

"You're telling me." He chuckled.

"I had no idea that you were under so much pressure. And you're right, they shouldn't do that to you. Just, tell me next time, okay?"

He nodded, then pulled her in for a quick kiss. "Sure."

Casey grinned. "And Edwin's right, you wont get anyone better than me."

"Oh, I don't know about that." Derek smirked as he pulled her in for a much longer kiss.

\--

"When are you going to tell her?" Sam asked cautiously.

"I don't know." Derek mumbled as he put down the controller for the game and leaned back against the couch tiredly.

"You know you have to tell her right?"

"Yeah, I got that."

"So, when are you going to do it?" Sam repeated.

"I will do it, once you stop nagging me."

"I will stop nagging you, once you do it."

"It's not easy, Sam." Derek stated as he stared ahead.

"It never is."

"But I should tell her." He said, as if trying to convince himself.

"Yeah, you should."

"And you're not helping."

"I'm here as a moral compass."

Derek scoffed. "Yeah, thanks."

"Just do it, and get it over with."

He sighed. "You're right. I'm just worried about how she's going to take it."

Sam watched his best friend carefully. He was really into Casey. "Just tell her about Writman and see how she reacts."

"We both know how she's going to react." Derek said sadly.

Sam shrugged. "She might surprise you."

Derek's eyes wandered to a framed family picture and his gaze zeroed in on Casey's profile. "Yeah, let's hope so."


	14. Chapter 14

Sam raised his glass of coke as he faced his friends who sat around the table at Smelly Nelli's. "To us!"

"To school!" Emily cheered, repeating his action.

"To the future!" Casey said, raising her own glass.

"To hockey!" Derek grinned as he was playfully smacked by his girlfriend.

"And to fries!" Everyone turned to Ralph, confused. "What? These fries are whack man." He said gleefully as he picked several off the plate and stuffed it in his mouth.

Casey tried to keep the look of disgust off her face. "So, anyway. Can you believe that graduation is tomorrow?"

"I know!" Emily cried out. "And I still haven't decided what to wear yet."

Sam turned to Emily. "Um.. aren't we all wearing the gowns?"

"Yes, but we need to wear something under the gowns." Emily replied.

"But, it doesn't matter what you wear, since it wont be seen." Sam was confused as to why this was even an issue.

"Actually, you can get glimpses of it. So, I must wear something to compliment the gown."

"Dude!" Derek interrupted Sam from asking another question. "Can we not talk about _gowns_ please?"

"Yeah man." Ralph said with his mouth still stuffed with fries. "Gowns are such a chick thing. I wonder why they want us to dress like girls." He said thoughtfully.

Casey shook her head. "It's not a chick thing Ralph. I mean, girl thing."

Emily took a sip of her drink. "So, are we doing anything tomorrow? To celebrate graduation?"

Sam, Derek and Ralph grinned at each other, leaving Emily and Casey to look at them, confused.

"What?" Casey asked cautiously. The three of them looked devilishly happy, which was never a good sign.

"It's nothing." Derek shrugged nonchalantly. He knew she wouldn't drop it, and he was right.

"Seriously, tell me." She tugged at his sleeve.

Derek rolled his eyes. "It's just something that the hockey team decided to give the school as a parting gift."

Emily looked between the three boys, and her eyes widened in realization. "The senior prank?"

Casey looked at them confused. "I thought the senior prank was already done."

"You mean all the books being stolen from school last Friday?" Ralph questioned, as he continued to gulp down the fries.

"Yeah, that."

"A decoy." Sam said coolly as he took a sip of his drink.

"The real prank is on tomorrow, after graduation." Derek smirked as he leaned back in his chair. "That way, they cant threaten to take away our diplomas since we will

already have them." The three boys grinned even widely.

Casey turned to Derek with a stern expression on her face. "I hope you're not planning on disrupting the whole of graduation for some stupid prank."

"Case, relax." He shook her gently. "It will be _after_ graduation."

"So then, what's the prank?" Emily asked, excitedly.

"Sorry, cant say. It's a surprise." Derek said cockily.

Emily rolled her eyes. "Oh please, as if you cant tell us. We're not snitches."

"You aren't, but she is." Derek said pointing to Casey.

Her mouth fell open in shock. "I am _not_ a snitch." She observed the knowing glances they all threw each other. "I'm not!"

Sam cleared his throat. "Actually, you're a do-good-er. And sometimes, that's the same thing."

"It's not the same thing." Casey retaliated, heatedly.

"Well.." Emily cringed as her best friend glared at her. "You do kind of find it difficult to keep a secret if it's something bad."

"I can keep a secret." Casey said irritated.

Derek sighed. "No, you cant. If they suspect us, you'll cave. You always do." He interrupted his girlfriend as she turned to argue with him. "And don't bother denying it. We all know it's true." Casey huffed, crossed her arms angrily and leaned back in her chair, causing him to roll his eyes at her predictability. "How about we change the topic of conversation huh?"

"Good idea, D." Sam looked straight at his best friend meaningfully. "So, what is everyone doing for the summer break before college?" Emily and Casey seemed to notice his change in demeanor, while Ralph obliviously consumed more fries. "D? What you up to?"

Derek let out an unintentional bout of nervous laughter. "Nothing. Planning to just hang around, play some hockey." He glared at Sam. "What about you?"

Sam shrugged. "Nothing. Going to just hang around, play some hockey."

Emily looked between the two boys. "Are we missing something?"

"Nope." The two best friends said simultaneously, their glances fixed defensively on each other.

Casey turned to her boyfriend. "What's going on?"

Derek shrugged. "It's nothing, Case."

"Derek!"

"I'll fill you in later." He whispered in her ear. Casey raised her eyebrow at him, but said nothing. Feeling his phone vibrate in his pocket, Derek checked the message. "Sammy, the boys need us. Ralph, you wanna come?"

"Yeah, as long as I can take the fries with me." He said enthusiastically.

Derek let out a light chuckle. "Be my guest."

"Why cant _we_ come?" Casey asked suspiciously.

"Because, this is a prank by the hockey team. And last time I checked, Ralph can blend in with us, while you two cant." Casey frowned. "See you at home?" She nodded her head as the three boys stood up and proceeded to put on their jackets.

The two girls watched the boys as they hurriedly said their goodbyes and rushed out to the prince. "So.." Emily said as she grabbed her own jacket. "The mall?"

Casey grinned. "You read my mind."

\--

"Um.. George?" Casey called out as she entered the kitchen. "What's with all the food?"

"Huh?" George turned around from where he was pulling out plates from the cabinet.

"The food? Outside? On the table?"

"The food?" He looked at her, confused, until recognition dawned on his face. "Oh, that. I just think it's time to celebrate."

"To celebrate what?"

George grinned. "You'll find out soon enough." And with that parting statement, he grabbed the plates and headed to the dining room table.

Casey stood still for a few seconds as she contemplated the various reasons that could be cause to celebrate. But since the choices were numerous, she gave up on the guessing game and followed her step-father, just in time to see Derek walk into the house, and hang up his jacket with a greeting.

"Woah! Dad! What's all this?" Derek exclaimed gleefully as he took his place at the table.

"Yes, Georgie. Are you going to tell us what this is about?" Nora questioned as she sat down next to Derek.

"Yes, George." Casey too took her place. "Are you going to tell us?"

"All in good time." George grinned at their curiosity. He loved holding their attention.

Lizzie sat down in her chair and looked at the food suspiciously. "Is this a bribe?"

"I don't think so." Edwin shook his head. "Dad, did you finally follow through with your threat and sell us as slave children?" He narrowed his eyes. "This is our last meal, isn't it?"

George chuckled. He was in too good a mood to let his son's comments get to him. "Not today, Edwin."

"Hey!" Marti pouted. "This is all what Smerek likes."

This statement caused the rest of the family members, save George to raise their eyebrows in curiosity. Derek laughed lightly. "Finally admitting that you're gonna miss me, huh Dad?"

Casey looked at George, who was still the only person standing. "This is for Derek?" Part of her thought it unfair, since he wasn't the only recipient of a scholarship.

"Yes, it is." George's grin widened.

Nora's eyes narrowed when she realized how insensitive her husband was being. "And when are we celebrating Casey's scholarship?"

George looked at her, confused. "Scholarship? This isn't for the scholarship."

"It's not?" Derek questioned.

"No." George watched the confused faces of his family members. "I got an interesting call this afternoon."

Derek felt a panic rise within him. "Dad, whatever they said, don't believe them. They can't prove that I did it."

George's eyes narrowed. "Did what?"

Noticing that all eyes were on him, Derek gave a sheepish smile. "Nothing. Please continue."

George watched his son for any signs of guilt, before deciding that his news couldn't wait any longer. "Anyway, this caller said something very interesting." Derek moved lower in his seat, convinced that they had traced the prank to him. But George didn't notice since he concentrated on the rest of his audience. "Turns out that we might have a professional hockey player sitting at this very table." Derek's head snapped up as he realized what his father was talking about. He wanted to stop him, but his throat was inexplicably dry. He avoided the curious glances of his family, especially Casey, who seemed to be looking at him questioningly.

"What are you talking about George?" Nora asked.

"Derek? You want to tell them?" George observed his son's silence, and mistook it for encouragement to continue. "Imagine my surprise when I received a call from none other than the scout for the Oilers, informing me of their interest in my son. Who, it turns out, will be leaving us in three days to spend the summer training for a spot in the reserves." George looked down at his son with pride. "What I'm wondering is, when were you planning on telling us?"

Derek stayed silent as he looked at the one person who seemed to be avoiding his eyes. Casey cleared her throat. "May I be excused?"

Nora looked at her daughter sympathetically. "Sure, honey." It was obvious to nearly everyone that Casey did not know anything about this news.

Derek stood up just as Casey reached the top of the stairs. "Yeah.. I need to.. yeah.." He mumbled and fled after her.

George looked curiously at the remaining members around the table. "Did I miss something?" Which earned him disapproving looks.

\--

"Now is not the time, Derek." Casey snapped half-heartedly as she heard her bedroom door open.

"I was going to tell you." Derek mumbled.

Casey turned to him angrily. "When? After you leave?"

"I'll be gone only for a few weeks."

Her eyes narrowed. "How long have you known?"

Derek nervously shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "I've known for a few days now."

She crossed her arms over her chest. "Define few days."

He sighed. "Since the day after our last hockey game."

"And you didn't feel the need to tell me?" She asked incredulously.

"I didn't know that I would get into the training camp. It was just a possibility until two days ago."

"And you didn't feel the need to even mention the 'possibility'?"

"If I did, you would have been paranoid and not enjoyed the past couple of days."

Casey scoffed. "That's not a good excuse."

"But it's a valid one." He said.

She shook her head. "I'm just confused. Where are you going? When are you coming back? What are you going for?"

Derek let out a sigh as he sat down on her bed. "I got a call after the game from a person called Jonah Writman, he's a scout for the Oilers. He saw me play, and he said that they might be interested in recruiting me. There is a training camp for eight weeks which I have to go through, and if they want me, he said we could talk contracts." Casey stayed silent. "Two days ago, he called and said that I was shortlisted for the camp. It's rigorous training, and I have to leave in three days."

"Where?" She whispered.

"Edmonton."

"For eight weeks?"

He nodded his assent.

"That's not so bad." She said thoughtfully. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Derek's eyes fell from her gaze as he looked at the floor with intense interest. "If I make it, I'll have to move there."

Casey felt her breath hitch. "Oh."

"I haven't decided whether to take up the offer. That was probably why Writman called Dad. He must have wanted to know if I'm coming or not."

Casey looked up at him, surprised. "Why wouldn't you take the offer?"

He shrugged. "I don't know."

"You _have_ to take the offer." Casey said as she sat down next to him. "It's your dream."

"But, what if I don't make it?" He asked softly.

"You _will_ make it. I don't think any of us doubt that."

"I'm not exactly the best hockey player, Case."

"I didn't know your ego had deflated." Casey giggled when he rolled his eyes. "But you're talented and determined. You want this, right? Mr. Four time MVP?" She teased.

Derek let out a chuckle. "Yeah, I do."

"Then go for it. Get the spot."

"And what if I get the spot?" He looked at her meaningfully.

"We'll think of something."

"Great! Bring thinking into this."

"All the greatest decisions are brought about by thinking." She argued.

"No wonder they're so lame." Derek mumbled, and earned a playful slap by Casey.

"I'm still mad at you, you know."

"You'll forgive me." He said cockily.

"Don't bet on it."

"Casey, Casey, Casey. Don't bet against me. I always win." He chuckled when she rolled her eyes at him, and kissed her softly.

\--

"Wow! You two are really going all out on the eye sex." Emily whispered, which caused Casey to blush and immediately break eye contact with Derek. They had just braved countless blinding flashes, as photographs of their graduation were taken again and again. The parents were currently having their own meeting consisting of conversations under the topic of 'my kid versus your kid', while their children used the time to say their goodbyes.

"We're not having eye sex." Casey protested.

Emily rolled her eyes. "Sure. And staring at him like you want to rip his clothes off is not eye sex at all."

"Em! We're not like that."

Emily grabbed her friend's hand in mock sympathy. "Case, you two are seriously frustrated. Do something about it."

Casey felt her face redden further. "And what do you suggest? For me to sleep with him?"

"That's a start." Emily let out a laugh when her friend scowled.

"There's still a little problem with that theory, remember?

"Just tell him already. He'll understand."

"I lied to him. He won't understand that."

"He might."

"You don't know that."

"And you should give him the benefit of doubt." Emily cocked her head to the side. "Speaking of which, lover boy's on his way." She teased.

"Hey!" Derek called out as he walked towards them, a huge grin on his face. "What did you girls think? Nice right?"

Casey put on her 'stern face' as she faced him. "Nice? Derek, there was nothing nice about the prank you pulled."

He pouted slightly. "Come on. It's a classic. And might I add that it hasn't been done to this high school for over ten years."

"It _is_ a classic." Emily said, earning a glare from her best friend. "Come on Case, rearranging all the faculty's cars so that they spell out 'JSTH' is pretty impressive. And not to mention hard."

Derek threw her an appreciative glance. "See? Emily's got the school spirit."

Casey shook her head in exasperation. "How did you do it anyway?"

Derek grinned, happy to share some of his wisdom. "It's been a week long effort. We had to steal their keys, make copies and return it by the end of the day. No problem when you have nearly twenty people in on it."

Casey's jaw dropped. "That's stealing!"

"No." Derek said slowly. "It's called borrowing. We returned all the keys."

Her eyebrows shot up. "And the copies?"

Derek shrugged. "Will be in safe hands _just_ in case we need it again."

"Derek!" Casey reprimanded.

"Case, _relax._ It's not like they can prove that any of us did it. And besides.." He smirked. "there is no threat of detention."

Casey rolled her eyes. "I'm just surprised that you didn't spell out a more raunchy word."

Derek chuckled. "We would have, but there weren't enough cars to spell any of them."

She shook her head. "You are so juvenile."

His smirk didn't die. "As if you don't like that about me."

"YO D!" They all turned to see the hockey team urging him to join them in taking more team pictures.

"Well, gotta go. Duty calls. See you at Ralph's?" He called out just before he jogged to his teammates.

"Will see you there." Casey replied, then turned to her best friend. "So, you ready for your first party as a high school graduate?"

Emily grinned. "You bet."

\--

"The stupid lock is not opening." Casey growled in frustration as she jiggled the key violently. The fact that her feet could hardly keep her upright was not helping.

Derek chuckled from where he was leaning against the wall. "There's nothing wrong with the lock, you're just drunk."

"I'm not drunk." He threw her a skeptical look. "I'm just a _little_ tipsy."

"I should have never let you drink so much." He said, amused. He grabbed the keys from her and easily opened the door.

Casey stared at the door for a few seconds before scowling at him. "You cheated."

Derek let out another chuckle. "I did? How?"

"I don't know." Casey took a step towards him and put her arms around his shoulders. "But I'm going to find out."

"Sounds promising." Derek whispered before capturing her mouth with his. He pulled back quickly, since he wasn't sure if the dizziness he was experiencing was due to kissing Casey, or mixing drinks, or both. "Let's get inside." He murmured against her mouth before leading her to the living room.

Casey turned around and kissed him softly. "I got a better idea. Let's go upstairs. To your room." She pulled him by his jacket and gave him a slightly longer kiss.

Derek grinned. "What the Princess wants, the Princess gets."

In one swift movement, he lifted her bridal style, causing Casey to giggle and clutch onto him. Luckily for Derek, his tolerance level was rather high when it came to alcohol, so he hardly tripped as he headed towards his room. He kicked open the door and dropped her on the bed, locking the door behind him. He proceeded to take off his jacket to toss it on the nearby chair, before he joined his girlfriend on his bed. "Now, where were we?"

Casey giggled, as she pulled him towards her. "I think, we were right here." The kiss they shared was slow and deep.

Derek wrapped his arms around her, and gently bit her throat, causing her to arch against him and let out a soft moan. Casey was vaguely aware that she was making out with him on his bed. She knew where this was leading, yet she felt helpless to stop it, especially when his hands traveled slowly under her skirt and up her inner thigh while he dropped tiny kisses around her neck. He skillfully discarded her top and bra, followed by her skirt. She pulled him closer to her, their limbs were a tangled mess, their kisses were becoming feverish. She wanted to feel his hard body against hers, and all she could think about was the unexplainable need to satisfy her carnal desire. A desire for everything he could physically offer her. Within moments, she had forgotten all her inhibitions. She wanted him. And she didn't care if it was the alcohol that encouraged her.

That feeling would be the last thing that Casey McDonald would remember the next morning.


	15. Chapter 15

Casey blinked as she felt the rays of the morning sun penetrate into her subconsciousness. She felt dizzy, lazy, and pukish, which meant one thing. She was hung over. Again. Groaning, she moved to get herself off the bed, only to stop when the throbbing pain in her head increased. Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes, adamant not to spend the day sleeping in. As she faced the wall which adorned familiar posters that didn't belong to her, her throat closed up, and a sense of panic rose in her chest. Her eyes slowly roamed around the room until her gaze fell on the blue comforter she was snuggled under. Biting her lip while praying that her suspicions were not true, she raised the fabric to reveal her naked body underneath. She closed her eyes in an effort to block out the memories that instantly flooded her mind. She remembered everything. At least nearly everything. She remembered the party the night before. Derek, and how handsome he looked. She remembered the drinks. The music. Coming into his room. And kissing him. She wished she knew if they did the deed, or even have a slight recollection of it. Unfortunately, her mind failed her. As her headache lessened due to the thoughts of these new developments, she was finally able to notice an ache between her legs. An ache which made her be relatively sure that she might have gone into unfamiliar territory last night.

Forcing herself to get out of bed in an effort to ignore her growing embarrassment, she started searching for her clothes. Her eyes fell to the foot of the bed, where her garments were carefully folded. She began dressing, partly thankful that Derek had let her be alone, while another part, thought it very insensitive of him. A million questions ran through her mind. Did they really sleep together? Did he notice? Did they use protection? Where was he? Was he mad at her? Was she _that_ bad in bed?

She silently walked out of Derek's bedroom, so as not to draw attention to herself, and sneaked into hers. Grabbing all the necessary things she needed, she headed to the bathroom, feeling the need of a very cold shower.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Casey walked down the stairs cautiously. She wanted to talk to him, but at the same time, she wanted to avoid it. He was where she thought he would be, sitting at the island in the kitchen with his back turned towards her. He looked tense, even from behind. Taking a deep breath, she walked purposefully towards him. She had spent the last half hour in the shower trying to decide how she felt about this whole situation, and she has finally made up her mind. Now she wanted to know what exactly happened last night, and only Derek could answer her.

"Hey." She said softly as she turned to face him.

Derek simply stared down at the bowl of cereal he was playing with. The only indication that he heard her was how his jaw locked at her greeting.

This wasn't one of the reactions she expected him to have. "Um.." She looked around the kitchen. "You know, if you want, I could make you some pancakes." She said cheerfully.

Derek stayed silent, his eyes avoiding her presence.

Casey was thrown off by his hostility towards her, but decided to make one more effort. "You know what? I'll make you some." She turned towards the cabinet and started pulling out any ingredients she might need. She was so busy trying to avoid the tension in the room, that she didn't notice Derek angrily drop the spoon he was eating cereal with and walk towards her. As she was about to pick up a bowl, his hand shot out and grabbed her wrist.

"Why didn't you tell me?" His features were a mix of anger, hurt and betrayal. And all Casey could do was stare at him dumbly.

"Huh?"

"Why didn't you tell me?" He repeated more forcefully. "I know I'm not the smartest, but did you _really_ think that I wouldn't have noticed your first time?"

At least one of her questions were answered. "So.. we??" She asked.

Derek let go of her hand and turned away from her. "Yeah." He mumbled, sounding angry. He scoffed. "You're not the first chick to do this to me you know. There have been girls who have done the same thing you did last night just to get around my policy of not sleeping with virgins. Let's get the dumb jock drunk so he would hump anything that moves!" He let out a bitter laugh. "I guess I should have known that you would lie to me too."

"Derek.."

"You made me think that it wasn't your first time." He snapped, harshly. "You made me do something that I didn't want to do."

Casey felt anger boil within her at his statement. "Is sleeping with me _that_ horrible?" She took a step back to physically stand her ground. "You cant tell me that you didn't want to sleep with me. We both know that's not true."

"I never pressured you."

"I know! Exactly _why_ I wanted to sleep with you."

"Wait! Are you telling me that you did this on purpose? And here I thought that it was all a mistake." Derek said sarcastically.

Casey felt like screaming in frustration. "Oh my God! Do you really think that I am such a conniving snake as to trick you into sleeping with me?" She asked incredulously.

His face was set. "You tell me."

Her face flushed with anger. "Fine! You keep thinking that." Casey pushed past him roughly and made her way to the living room before turning on her heel and marching back into the kitchen. "But just so you know. I _never_ intended this to happen. I never told you that I was a virgin. And the reason I never corrected you thinking that I wasn't one was because of how you made me feel about my inexperience. So don't try blaming everything on me. If you had asked me outright, I would have told you. But we didn't talk about it, and look at where we are now. At least you remember your first time." And turning swiftly she rushed to her room. She didn't want him to see the tears falling down her face.

"Fuck." Derek groaned before rushing after her. He was really a royal ass. Why couldn't he learn to handle these issues better?

After a moments hesitation as he stood in front of Casey's bedroom door, he walked in and closed the door behind him. She was lying down on the bed, her back turned away from him. Her slight sobbing made him feel ten times worse. "Case.." He said softly in an effort to say something. More apologetic words eluded him. Getting courage from the fact that she probably heard him but didn't throw anything at his head, he lied down next to her and hesitantly placed his arms around her. She made no effort to move, made no indication that she could feel his presence.

"Sorry." Derek mumbled softly against her hair. "I just.. I didn't want you to hate me."

"Hate you?" Casey asked through sniffles.

He smiled. She was talking to him again. "Yeah.. I sort of..slept with you without your consent." He cringed as he voiced the thought that had been plaguing his mind that whole morning. He didn't want to use the more commonly used term, although in all actuality, he felt like he committed it.

Casey turned to face him. "Derek, we were both drunk.."

He shook his head. "You were, I wasn't." He said disgustedly. "I took advantage of you."

"But I'm sure you were.." She started, but was interrupted by his look. "You didn't take advantage of me."

Derek let out a bitter laugh. "I think I remember a bit more than you." He saw her blush at that thought. "Sorry." He mumbled again.

The fact that Derek Venturi, the former skirt chasing cad and womanizer of her grade was so worried about her safety and happiness made her want to do one single thing. Pulling him closer, she kissed him. She tried to convey everything that she was feeling, the gratefulness, the assurance and the happiness in that one act. After a moment of surprise, he kissed her back. Pulling away, he searched her face for any indication as to her thoughts. "Case, I took away something important to you, why aren't you mad?"

Casey smiled back at him. "It was important. I mean, it _is_ important. But.." She lifted her hand and lightly ran her fingers through his hair. "I wouldn't have done it with anyone else. I'm happy it was with you."

His eyes narrowed. "You're saying this just to make me feel better aren't you?"

She shook her head. "Nope. I.. "

"You what?"

Casey blushed. "Nothing." She had nearly said the three words she had been thinking. He wasn't ready for it, and she knew that.

Derek lightly moved his hand under her shirt to caress her skin gently. "I'm sorry by the way." He said softly, an attempt at not being too sappy for his own taste.

"I know." A thought suddenly struck her. "Girls seriously get you drunk to sleep with them?" She tried to hide the jealousy she felt at the thought.

"Yeah. Pretty much. They pretend that they're not virgins, then we go for a party and.." He shrugged. "Sometimes I remember the day after and sometimes I don't."

"Oh." Even though she knew he slept around, having him admit it to her didn't improve her mood. "So, why the policy?"

Derek shrugged again. "I know how important it is for girls to have their first time with a boyfriend or whatever. I didn't like the idea of anyone regretting that they slept with me."

He said that so casually that she knew he meant every word. "And no one has ever regretted it?" She knew she was fishing, but she couldn't help it.

He smirked. "No complaints so far."

"De-rek!" She lightly slapped him, and he chuckled. "Um.. what about me?" She asked slowly while her eyes were fixed on his collar, and not his face.

"What about you?"

Casey felt uncomfortable with the question she was asking him, but she had to know. "Um.. How was I? Last night.. I mean." She said it quickly, while she avoided his gaze.

Derek observed her curiously. Should he tell her the truth, or have a bit of fun with it? He chose the latter. "Well.. " He started seriously. "You had two tequila shots and got pretty wasted off that, so I don't think that you should.. " She playfully hit him, and he let out a low laugh before capturing her mouth with his. Casey sighed in content as she kissed him back, until she remembered the question she wanted answered.

Pushing him away from her, she stared him down with a stern glance. "I'm serious. How was I? Am I a four? Or am I a three? Please don't tell me that I'm a two. I'm a two, aren't I? I knew it! You can admit it, I know I'm a two.. " She noticed Derek looking at her in amusement. "What?"

"You're definitely not a two." He said smoothly before kissing her again. He was interrupted again by her pushing him away.

"Then what am I?"

"I'm not going to tell you." He said, teasing her.

"Why not?"

"Why do you need to know?"

"Why aren't you answering my question?"

"Why aren't you answering _my_ question?"

"Derek.."

"Yeah.."

"You're evil."

He smirked. "I know." He rolled them over so that he was on top of her. "We done talking now?" He asked suggestively.

"No." Casey said sweetly. "We're not done talking 'till you rate me from one to ten. One being the worst, and ten being the best."

His eyebrows raised in astonishment. "You're serious?"

"Yup. I need to improve. Sex is very important to a relationship these days. And I think it's important for me to know where I am as a first timer. I mean, you're the experienced one." She finished softly. Thoughts of Derek with half her school's female population flooded her mind. And it wasn't pretty.

Derek groaned. "Don't make me say it."

She looked at him, confused. "Say what?"

"The truth." He whispered softly.

"And what's the truth?"

He sighed. "The truth.." He lowered himself onto her, and buried his face against the crook of her neck. "The truth is, last night was the best I've ever had, and it kills me that you don't remember it." He said softly against her skin.

Casey could hear the hurt in his voice. He never could face anyone when he admitted his feelings which was why he avoided looking at her. "Well, considering the fact that we have a few hours left until everyone comes home, maybe you could remind me what we did last night."

Derek stilled against her. "You're serious?"

Casey smiled, she loved surprising him. It was a form of adrenaline. "Yeah. And besides, you're leaving tomorrow." She finished sadly.

"Yeah. But let's not talk about that." Derek growled playfully before kissing her.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Casey looked around her best friend's room which was now devoid of nearly all of Emily's favorite things. "I'm going to miss this." She turned to her best friend who was placing some last minute books in a box. "And I'm going to miss you."

Emily gave her a stern look. "Casey, you promised. No tears."

"I'm not crying."

"But you will if you keep talking about how much we're going to miss each other."

"It's sucks that you're going to the U.S. You'll be so far away from me."

"I know." Emily sighed. "But, I will be back home for the holidays, and for the summer."

Casey sat down on the bed, feeling defeated. "Every thing's changing, Em. Everyone's leaving. I'm leaving."

"Not _everyone's_ leaving." Emily hinted at her friend. "What time is he coming tomorrow?"

"Mid-afternoon." Casey couldn't help but smile at the thought. "I really miss him. And not to mention the fact that we hardly spoke while he was away."

Emily sensed the bitterness in her friend's voice. "You knew he would be busy, and tired when he wasn't."

"I know. It's just hard not having him around."

"So, did he get it?"

"I don't know. Apparently this Writman guy was going to choose the 'potential Oilers' just before they leave."

Emily stopped arranging the books to look at her friend. "Case, what if he gets chosen? What are you going to do?"

"I don't know." Casey shrugged half-heartedly. "I don't know if I can handle the long distance thing. But on the other hand, I don't want to lose him." She said softly.

"Then try the long distance thing then." Emily said trying to sound optimistic.

Casey shook her head. "How can we? We'll be in two different states, and I'll get to see him only on the off chance that he's free when I'm free and we both end up in London. It's not like I can drive to Alberta every weekend. And even if I could, he would be insanely busy with university and training. We hardly talk as it is. Add my impending workload, and it's a practical improbability that we could talk to each other. Not to mention that we're not even eighteen years old. Most studies show that people go through a sort of 'finding themselves' faze between the ages of sixteen and twenty three.."

"Casey!" Emily interrupted. "Stop making excuses."

"I'm not making excuses, I'm being practical." She retaliated.

"Fine then. Practically speaking, you two need to discuss this." Emily said sternly.

"I know." Casey said softly.

Emily grabbed a pillow and tossed it to her friend. "So then, changing the subject to something less depressing.." Casey smiled at her best friend's attempt. "How's the play going?"

"It's good." Casey's voice perked up just as Emily thought it would. "Although I could live without Simon's constant attention. I don't think he get's that I have a boyfriend."

"Maybe he thinks that he doesn't exist."

"Well, after I kiss Derek in front of everyone after the play, he'll have no choice but to admit to his existence."

"That bad huh?" Emily asked.

Casey rolled her eyes. "You have no idea. The guy is a jerk of the first order. I bet his main goal is to hook up with all the girls in the play, and he's just pissed that so far, the only two left are me and Milly."

Emily sighed. "He is pretty cute though."

"Emily!"

"What? There is no law against admiring him from afar."

Casey shook her head. "For you, there should be." She let out giggle when another pillow was aimed at her head.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You excited?" Kevin questioned as he slapped Derek on his back.

"Who wouldn't be? It's official." Derek grinned as they high fived each other. Ever since they got the news half an hour ago, they had been hyped up. The adrenaline of hearing your name on a professional hockey roster was exhilarating. And it has yet to fade.

"Dude! Can you believe it?" Justin asked. "We, are the chosen four." He said dramatically as he placed his hand on his chest and raised his head in a mock salute. The others couldn't help but roll their eyes at his theatrics.

"Yeah, yeah." Mumbled Jon. "I still stand behind what I said. You." He pointed at Justin. "Clearly bribed Writman and Allen. No way could a ballet dancer be a professional hockey player."

"Excuse me?" Justin asked raising his eyebrows. "I did ice skating, not ballet."

"Same thing." Derek chuckled and received a playful shove from him.

"And ice skating and hockey are pretty similar." He observed the disbelieving looks of his fellow teammates. "Am I the only one here who has seen 'The Cutting Edge'?"

"Look man." Kevin said as he zipped his bag. "Just don't bring a tutu when you show up for practices."

"Why not? Is pink not your color?" Justin asked as he playfully pinched Kevin's cheek. Kevin tried to grab his teammate who eluded him easily by jumping over the locker bench. Kevin made a move to follow him until Justin grabbed his duffel bag, quickly unzipped it, and pulled out something that he didn't want shown to anyone.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" Justin asked thoughtfully.

"Justin. Give it back." Kevin growled before making a grab for the papers his teammate held in his hands.

"Oh, you want it? Here!" Justin tossed it over Kevin's head to Derek.

Derek glanced at the letter while walking away from an advancing Kevin and read out the first line in a high pitched voice. " _Dear Kiki, I really miss you_. _I hope the tryouts are not too demanding on you._ " He tossed the letter which was easily grabbed by Jon who continued reading in a fake female voice.

"I _'ve been thinking about you a lot lately_." Jon started moving back, as Kevin moved towards him. " _I hope you miss me just as much."_ As Kevin tried to grab the letter, Jon tossed it to the nearest person.

" _I had a dream about you last night._ " Justin continued as he too started moving away from his teammate. " _We were in your room and you..."_ He stiffened suddenly, his eyes on the paper, too shocked to read the next few sentences aloud. "Holy Crap!"

Kevin didn't wait before he tackled him to the floor and wrenched the letter from Justin's grasp, which described in vivid detail the recent sex dream his girlfriend had had. "You." He pointed at Justin who was still lying down on the floor, while ignoring the laughter of Derek and Jon. "Are _so_ lucky that I don't beat up little girls."

Justin chose to ignore the insult. "Dude! Seriously! _Kiki?_ " He stood up. "That is so Season 2 of The OC."

"Dude! Seriously! The OC?" Derek questioned amidst laughter. "Do you watch anything that is _not_ a chick show?"

"Hey! I'll have you know that The OC was a very good show, until Season 3. Killing Mischa Barton was such a bummer. She was hot."

"That, I agree with." Jon said as he grabbed his own bag. "So, your girl had a dream about you huh?" He winked at Kevin.

"A very sexy dream I'm guessing." Derek piped in. "Although I can't imagine getting it up when your girlfriend calls you _'Kiki_ '."

"Laugh all you want, Venturi." Kevin said smugly. "We all know how you drop everything just to _talk_ your girl. You're just a stone throw away from my kind of relationship."

"And what kind of relationship is that?" Derek smirked. He knew Casey was the lovey-dovey type. But luckily for him, she understood him enough not to act too sappy around him.

"The kind where the girl moves all across the country to be with you." Kevin said as he put the letter back in his bag, and zipped the folds closed.

"She's moving here?" Jon questioned as he checked his own locker to make sure he hadn't forgotten anything.

"Next year. After graduation. She's applying to a uni close by."

Justin threw his arms around a very surprised Kevin. "That is the most romantic thing I've ever heard." He sniffled. "Apart from 'The Notebook'."

"Okay." Kevin forcefully removed Justin's arms from around him. "We need to seriously get you interested in action warfare, and disinterested in chick programmes."

Justin threw him a look of mock-insult. "And miss the tear-jerkers? Never! What about you, V? Casey coming to Alberta?"

Derek was thrown by the question, but recovered pretty quick. Shrugging, he turned his back to the others to finish his packing. "I don't know. We didn't exactly discuss it."

Jon turned to the others. "See? This is the issue that arises from having girlfriends. Luckily I don't have that problem."

Derek chuckled. "That's because none of the girls you call, call you back."

"At least I'm not part of the fight for celibacy while away from the 'ol ball and chain." Jon retaliated.

Kevin looked at Jon sympathetically. "Dude! Keep in mind that while you go back home and say 'hi' to your family, Derek and I get to go home to two very gorgeous girls who would like nothing better to do but jump us."

Jon scowled. "That's playing dirty man."

"Yeah well, Kev's got a point." Derek said while grabbing his own bag. "Anyway ladies, shall we go? We still need to make sure we packed everything from our rooms."

"Oh yeah." Justin said picking up his own bag. "I hope my roommate didn't steal my Michael Jackson CD."

Kevin rolled his eyes. "I doubt he would."

"You don't know him like I do." Justin smirked and headed to the doors, with his future teammates following his lead. Each excited with the thought of being back home in just a few short hours.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Derek stood on his porch silently for a few seconds as excitement rose in his chest from the prospect of finally seeing his family. He would never admit it, but he wanted to hug his father, and even Nora. He wanted a kiss from Marti, he wanted to ruffle Edwin's hair, and even get a sisterly pat from Lizzie. But the one person he couldn't wait to get his hands on was Casey. The past few weeks was tortures for him. He couldn't imagine having a long distance relationship with the one person he had been living with for the past three years. But right now, he didn't want to think about it, all he wanted to do was put his arms around her, and give her a kiss for every second he thought about her.

Grin in place, he opened the door. No sooner had he taken two steps into the house, he was thrown off balance by the sheer weight of three younger siblings who jumped on him with cries of 'Derek!' and 'Smerek!'.

"Can't.. breathe.." Derek barely managed to sputter out before Lizzie pulled away from his neck with a curt 'sorry'.

Just as the other two let his other limbs go, his father, accompanied with Nora entered the living room with surprised smiles across their faces. It was Nora who reached him first and pulled him into a fierce mother-cub bear hug. "We thought you were coming tomorrow. We missed you so much."

"Um.. Thanks.." Derek mumbled awkwardly. He might like the fact that people wanted to give him hugs, but he was still uncomfortable with it.

"About time, Derek." George exclaimed, his voice dripping with pride as he pulled his son into a quick hug. "How come you're a day early?"

Derek shrugged. "Thought I'd surprise you."

"Never mind that." Edwin exclaimed excitedly. "Did you get it?"

"Yeah, did you get it?" Lizzie asked practically jumping on the spot.

"Um.. well.." Derek mumbled solemnly, enjoying the expectant looks the rest of the family was giving him. "I.."

"Spit it out, Smerek!" Marti cried as she pulled on his arm.

"I got it!" He yelled and was again deprived of oxygen as his family crushed him in excitement. The next thing he knew, there were dozens of questions being fired at him simultaneously. 'How was it? Were you the only one? Was it hard? Will you be transferring? Do you have an Agent? Did you sign any contracts?"

"Woah, woah, woah." Derek raised his arms in defense as he walked backwards away from his family. "I'm sure you are all dying to know how it was and everything, but first thing's first. Where's Casey?"

"She's at the auditorium, practicing for the play." Nora said. "She'll be home in about half an hour."

"I might as well go pick her up then." Derek said as he headed to the kitchen to grab the keys to the Prince. As expected, Casey hadn't taken his car.

"But you just came home." Marti pouted as she watched her older brother walk to their front door.

Derek stopped, and knelt in front of her. "I know, Smarti. But I'm coming back, okay?" He waited until she reluctantly nodded in understanding before shouting a farewell to the rest of the family and leaving them to go pick up his girlfriend. He couldn't wait to surprise her.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You sure you'll be fine?" Milly asked worriedly.

Casey let out a light laugh in an effort to assure up her friend. "Yes, now go." She said pushing her towards the door.

"Don't worry about her." A male voice said from behind Casey, who couldn't help but roll her eyes. "I'll stay with her until her father comes to pick her up."

"Step-father." Casey snapped. "And feel free to leave."

"Maybe I should stay." Milly said in a hesitant tone.

Casey looked at her sternly. "Milly, go home. I'll be fine. George will be here in.." She glanced at her watch. "fifteen minutes."

"Yeah, Milly. George will be here in fifteen minutes." The guy said casually before throwing an arm around Casey, who shrugged it off.

"Okay then. But if you need anything, call me okay?" Milly said as she quickly hugged Casey goodbye, grabbed her bag, and headed outside the grey building to a waiting car.

"Well, now that we're alone.." He said smoothly before trying to kiss her.

Casey managed to move her head away just in time. "Simon! Could you please stop it? I have a boyfriend remember?" She took a step away from him, and towards the main doors of the auditorium. Where was the guard when she needed him? Did he have to go through his nightly rounds now?

Simon took a step towards her. "I don't get you. You flirt with me, then you tell me to back off because of some imaginary boyfriend. No one likes a tease."

Casey's jaw dropped. "First of all, I _do_ have a boyfriend, and he's coming home tomorrow. And second of all, I _never_ flirted with you."

"You never flirted with me?" Simon asked sarcastically before taking another step towards her. "So, when you touched my arm, ruffled my hair, and even hugged me that

one time, that was all.. what exactly?"

"That was me showing you that I was comfortable with you as a _friend._ " Casey took another step towards the door. Her body was preparing an escape plan just in case she needed one.

"I don't believe that." He said cockily. "I think you're just playing hard to get."

"Believe me, if I _was_ playing hard to get, you would never get me." Casey said sweetly.

"Does that mean I _can_ get you?" Simon smirked when she scowled in disgust.

"You have to be the most arrogant, self-centered jerk I've ever met." She said in disgust before she reached for the door handle. She couldn't stay one more minute with him.

"I'll take that as a compliment." He smirked. In one swift movement, he grabbed her arms, turned her so that she was facing him, and landed his lips on hers.

Casey's eyes widened in astonishment. Struggling, she got her arms out of his grasp, and tried to push him away. But failed to succeed when his newly freed arms circled around her, and pulled her head and body against him. She tried to fight back and she felt herself well up in anger as he began to feel her up. Then, she heard someone clear their throat right next to them. Simon jumped away from her, letting her go in the process. Wiping her mouth from the unruly saliva that was just force fed down her throat, Casey turned to thank her savior, only to come face to face with..

"Derek!?!"

But he ignored her, his face was contorted to one of pure hatred as he stared down Simon. "You done attacking my girlfriend?" He sneered through clenched teeth.

Simon, who had thought nothing wrong of forcing a girl to kiss him to make her admit her deep lustful passions for him stared dumbstruck at Casey McDonald's excuse for the past few weeks. He opened his mouth to apologize when he was met squarely on the nose with his opponent's fist, causing him to stagger backwards from the force. The pain seared through his skin, as warm, bloody liquid leaked it's way down to his lips. He vaguely heard Casey gasp, and yell his name in the background as his own fist made contact with the other guy's cheek. Within seconds, they were on the ground, each delivering blow after blow, as they grabbed each other in an effort to inflict as much harm as possible.

"Derek! Simon! Stop it!" Casey yelled as she watched the two struggle on the ground.

"What's going on here?" A booming voice called out from the other entrance. Casey noticed the night guard as he ran towards them. Kneeling down he grabbed the two teenage boys by their respective collars and pulled them apart. "I don't care what you do in your personal time, but when you're here, you behave. Got it?" He observed the two as they stared daggers at each other. "Got it?" He said more forcefully.

"Yeah, I got it." Simon spat out as he pulled away from the guard. Standing up, he turned his attention to the only female in the room. "Do you see what happens when you lead a guy on, Case?" Content with the look his opponent threw at his girlfriend, Simon left. At least there were problems in paradise, even if they were courtesy of him.


	16. Chapter 16

"Ow." Derek winced. The stinging sensation on his lip was not helping.

"Sorry." Casey mumbled before lightly placing her handkerchief back on the cut. She ignored his indrawn breath and continued her actions as she systematically put more spirit on the cloth and then moved on to the deep cut near his hairline.

Derek watched her silently for a few seconds, while she tended to his injuries as they sat on the front steps of the auditorium. "You okay?" He asked softly.

"Yeah, I am." She gave him a small smile then. "Thanks to my Ivan Hoe."

"Yeah, well.. I aim to please." He smirked.

"You two alright?" The night guard questioned as he suddenly appeared near them.

Casey nodded. "Yup. Thanks so much, Dave." She handed the bottle of spirit he loaned her.

"You're welcome." He replied politely while taking the bottle from her. "Now, shouldn't the two of you get going? Your parents might get worried."

"They're always worried." Derek grinned. "But you're right, we better get going." He stood up and extended his hand for Casey to take it.

After a quick wave to the night guard, they headed towards the Prince.

"That wasn't how I expected to be greeted when coming home." Derek said humorously as he buckled his seat-belt.

"Neither did I. I wanted to do something more.. special." She said casually as she turned on the radio.

Derek raised his eyebrows in question. "Special?"

Casey grinned before she leaned forward and kissed him fully on the lips. Feeling the pinch of the seat-belt, Derek quickly snapped it open and leaned towards his girlfriend, pulling her as close as she could get. Their arms surrounded each other, exploring the bodies they had missed touching for the past few weeks. With all the excitement surrounding that jackass, as Derek thought fit to call Simon, he had forgotten the real reason he couldn't wait to get his hands on her. He missed her, and in true male fashion, his current mentality consisted of lustful thoughts that only Casey could fulfill.

Derek knew that all he could hope to get from her was a steamy make-out session before they had to go home. Which was why he wasn't surprised when she pulled back, but was extremely surprised when she threw him a mischievous grin and moved to the back seat. "So? You joining me or what?" Her grin was contagious.

Derek didn't think twice before following her lead between the car seats and practically pouncing on her. "How do you keep surprising me?" He asked while nuzzling her neck. It was getting increasingly hard to keep his hands off her.

Casey grinned back. "I guess it's in me." She kissed him, and he wasn't one to complain. Who would have thought that Casey McDonald, the most proper of all proper, would have sex in a car?

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You okay?" Derek asked, for what felt like the fifteenth time that night.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Casey smiled softly as she closed the book she had been reading.

Derek looked at her suspiciously. "Really. Because hanging out in the kitchen at two in the morning kinda constitutes as something being wrong."

"Everything's fine." Her smile felt strained.

Derek sighed. He hated it when she wasn't truthful with him. Taking a seat opposite her at the island, he fixed her with a stern look. "Spill."

She smiled brilliantly at him. "You worry too much. Everything is fine." She repeated.

He noticed the book that was inconspicuously hiding under her crossed arms. Without much warning, he grabbed it from under her.

"Derek! Give it back!" Casey made a desperate plea as she tried to get back the book unsuccessfully.

Derek felt his breath hitch as he read the title. "University of Alberta Admissions?"

Casey looked down, as if embarrassed. "I just wanted to check if there was a good literature programme."

"There isn't." Derek said softly. "Believe me, I checked."

"But they do have drama." She stated hopefully. "And you know how much I love being on stage."

He looked at her pointedly. "Your major is lit."

"Majors change. It's no big deal."

"It  _is_ a big deal. I want you to come with me. You have no idea how much. But.." He placed the book slowly on the counter. "I don't want you to sacrifice this scholarship for me."

"I wont be sacrificing anything." Casey whispered, as she placed her hand on his.

He smiled sadly at her. "You're right, because you  _will_  be going to UoT." As her jaw dropped in protest, he interrupted her. "I mean it. I'm following my dream, there is no reason why you shouldn't follow yours." He lifted her hand to his lips.

"Derek.." But really, there was nothing that she could say. He was right. Standing up, she moved around the island towards him. Derek placed his arms around her and pulled her against him. "What do we do?" Casey whispered as she snaked her arms around his shoulders.

"I don't know. But we have a few days until we need to decide."

"But the play! It'll take up all of my free time."

He shrugged. "We can work around it. I'm free remember? Maybe I can come and watch some of the rehearsals or something."

"You're kidding right? You? Coming to drama rehearsals? Willingly?" Casey let out a small chuckle. "I'll believe it when I see it."

Derek looked at her, offended. "Hey! I can stand drama." Casey looked at him pointedly. "Sometimes." She raised her eyebrows at him. "When I'm drunk enough."

"Well, I think the offer is sweet, but totally unnecessary."

"Oh! I think it's necessary as long as that jackass still exists."

She grinned. "You need not worry about him. He wont dare touch me after what you did to him."

"No one touches you." He smirked. "But me."

She giggled. "And I wouldn't have it any other way." Leaning down, she kissed him, having no intention of following his wishes.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"So, what do you think?" Derek asked anxiously.

Sam let out a low whistle. "Wow! That is more than a little pickle, my friend."

Derek rolled his eyes. "I knew that, Sherlock. What I need now is a solution."

Sam nodded. "Two words, man. Long distance."

Derek scrunched up his face. "See? I refuse to admit that. There has  _got_  to be another way."

"The other option is you moving to Toronto, or she moving to Edmonton. Take your pick."

"You're not funny."

"I'm not laughing."

Derek sighed. "I don't want to break up."

"Then don't."

He scoffed. "Yeah, sure. Do I seem like the commitment kind of guy to you?"

Sam's face scrunched up. "Is that a trick question?"

"You are not helping." Derek said in a frustrated tone as he stood up and started pacing around Sam's bedroom.

Sam sighed. "Look. You like her right?"

"Er.. yeah.." Derek threw a confused look at his best friend.

"And you want to see how far this thing goes?"

"Yeah."

"And does that mean that you can see the two of you together?" The pause that followed worried Sam. "Dude! Do you see the two of you together?"

"I don't know." Derek replied slowly. "We're just so different."

Sam really wanted to smack his best friend. Really, really badly. "Then you have your answer."

"Huh?"

"You guys will have to go your separate ways." He said matter-of-factly.

Derek leaned against the wall defeatedly. "You're right." At least his brain knew that. But he didn't feel like admitting it.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Casey was beaming. Not only did she receive glowing reviews from everyone she met, but she was gifted with five bouquets, one from Derek of course, and three boxes of her favourite chocolates. It felt like valentines day, and she was loving it.

"Derek!" She squealed as she ran towards him, her arms immediately enveloping him in a tight hug. "You came!"

"Obviously. Have you ever known me to miss an after party?" He smirked at her.

"No. Now that you mentioned it." She grabbed his arm. "Come on. I want to show you something."

"Um.. okay.." He let her drag him across the packed room to the backyard, where maneuvering expertly through the crowd, she led him to a waist high fence. Grinning at him, she opened it and pulled him after her, away from the crowd as they entered another backyard.

"Isn't it beautiful?" She sighed contentedly.

He was suddenly very confused. "What am I looking at?"

She rolled her eyes. "The house, silly."

"The house...?"

"Cant you see it? Right there." She pointed at the corner wall.

"Um.. See what?"

"Derek! I drew something on the wall." She looked at him excitedly, while he gave her a blank look. "I just committed  _vandalism_."

It suddenly dawned on him that Casey had committed a felony. He grinned. "That's great, Case. But I don't see anything."

Letting out a frustrated breath, she grabbed is arm and pulled him closer to the wall. "See?" She gestured.

"Er.. " Derek's face scrunched up in concentration as he tried to find this invisible writing.

Rolling her eyes, she bent down, and pointed to a tiny scribble on the wall. "Now do you see it?"

He couldn't help it. The fact that she thought that tiny scribble would amount to vandalism, that she was so excited by the concept of it, made him burst out laughing. He really couldn't help it. The whole situation was just so.. cute.

"Derek! It's not supposed to be funny." She said in a frustrated tone. "I just committed a crime. I thought you would be proud of me." She pouted.

"No, no." He gasped in the middle of his laughter. "I'm proud." He saw her pout and burst out laughing once again. This was beyond hilarious.

"Derek!" She whined.

"Okay, okay." Derek took a few deep breaths to calm himself down. "I'm proud okay? That is.. definitely.. something." He grinned at her, and was happy when she sent a small smile his way.

Casey took a step forward and placed her arms around his shoulders. "I knew you would be."

He kissed her. Which seemed like the most natural thing to do. Until he remembered the conversation he had with Sam. He pulled back, feeling a sense of panic rise up in his chest.

"What's wrong?" She looked at him, worriedly.

"We need to talk." He winced. He knew those words were used in every chick flick for a reason. He waited for her nod before he continued. "I'm leaving in two days." He wasn't saying something new. He knew it, and she knew it. But by saying it, he was asking her to open up the forum to a forbidden topic that they had been avoiding for the past two weeks.

She dropped her arms from around him. "I know." She said softly, sadly.

"We need to talk about it." He said slowly. He didn't want to talk about it. And he wanted her to object.

She moved away from him, and took a seat on the back-steps of the house they were examining five minutes ago. She waited while he took a seat beside her. "You want to break up." She deadpanned, her gaze falling on the party-goers in the neighbouring yard.

"I think it's the right thing to do." No! His brain screamed. Say 'No'!

She nodded, her eyes still not meeting his. "Okay." She said softly.

His head snapped towards her. "What?"

"Okay." She repeated, a bit more strongly. Taking a deep breath, she raised herself off the steps and started walking back.

"That's it?" He called after her. Standing up in anger, he followed her. "You are  _that_  okay with ending it?"

"No." Her voice quivered slightly. Turning around, she allowed him to see her eyes tearing up. "I'm not okay with it. But you are, so who am I to argue?"

He felt like shaking her. "I'm not okay with this."

She sniffled. "Could have fooled me. You had no problem coming here and telling me you want to end it, without so much as a  _discussion_  as to how we could try to make this work. Never mind that we have known each other for three years, even though we had been dating for only a few months. Never mind that our whole family is okay with this once in a blue moon situation. Never mind that  _I_  was willing to jump cities for you, while  _you_ couldn't care less where I go." She felt a tear run down her cheek, but ignored it. "So, yeah. I'm sorry that this is it. But the way I see it, this is a one way relationship that  _had_  to end. You don't love me. You'll never love me. And never mind that I do. But you know what? I'll get over it. It might have taken me close to four years to fall in love with you, But I'm sure it will take less time for me to fall out of it." Her voice broke, as she realized what she told him. Turning on her heel, she left hurriedly. Leaving Derek slack jawed, in addition to feeling like a stupid, stupid man.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"You are seriously not going to say goodbye?" Emily stared down her friend who was hugging 'Brady Bear' really tightly. "Casey! He's leaving in two hours!"

"I  _cant_  see him. He knows how I feel about him. I cant  _face_  him." She said in a panicked tone. "Why did I tell him that I loved him?" Casey whined.

Emily looked at her sympathetically. "He might be feeling the same way about you."

Casey looked at her friend as if she had suddenly gone mental. "Are you crazy? Of course he doesn't feel the same way. He's Derek! The King of Anti-love. Ugh.. I hate my life." She groaned and buried her face in the teddy bear's head.

"Emily! Derek's here to see you!" Mrs. Davis yelled, causing Emily and Casey's heads to snap up in surprise.

"I'm not here." Casey whispered, panicked.

"Casey.." Emily tried the stern tone. But her friend just shook her head rapidly. Why couldn't she control her best friend from acting spastic? With a sigh, she closed her bedroom door and headed downstairs.

She found Derek in the living room as he nervously shifted from one foot to the other, his hands deep in his pant pockets.

"Is she here?" He asked urgently.

"I'm not at liberty to say." Emily said slowly as she nodded her assent.

"I need to talk to her."

"She doesn't exactly feel up to talking."

"I'm leaving in like, five minutes. I  _need_  to talk to her. " He pleaded.

Emily bit her lip, the dilemma forming in her mind. "Upstairs, third door to the right."

He grinned. "Thanks."

Just as his foot hit the first stair, a thought occurred to her. "Derek! Wait!" She rushed to the kitchen and pulled a key off a hook. Returning back, she tossed it to him, who caught it effortlessly. Derek looked at the key in confusion. "My mother had an extra key to my bedroom made just in case I ever locked myself out or something." She blushed. "It happens a lot."

He looked at her gratefully. "Thanks."

Emily watched him as he took two stairs at a time to reach his destination. No one ever told her that she would be sitting in the front row to a soap drama.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Derek tried the door knob, but it didn't budge. "Case, I know you're in there." He heard a crash from the other side. "You alright?"

"..."

"Case?"

"...."

"Can you please open this door? This is ridiculous."

"...."

"If you don't open the door, then I will have to open the door for you."

"...."

"Fine! Have it your way!" He inserted the key, and sent up a silent prayer, when he heard the lock click open. He opened the door, and found Casey frantically trying to open the window as a means of escape. The room looked like a mess, even with as less stuff as there was. The only thing Emily hadn't shipped off to her Aunt's place were her clothes, which were strewn all over the floor. He also observed an overturned stool, which was probably what created the crash.

"Case!." She froze, and slowly turned towards him. She seemed like a deer caught in headlights.

"What are you doing here?" She asked calmly. It always amazed him how she could have such a cool exterior after panicking.

He was suddenly nervous again. And his dry laugh showed it. "Didn't you want to say goodbye?"

"We already said goodbye." She said dryly.

"That note was not a goodbye." He argued.

She shrugged. "I thought it was enough."

"Well, it wasn't."

She was tearing up again. "Why wont you just leave?"

He took a step towards her. "You want me to leave?"

She crossed her arms, and fixed her gaze on the floor. "You know I don't want that."

He took another step. "Then why are you pushing me to go?"

She looked at him then. "And why are you pushing  _me_?"

"I don't want to go." He confessed, taking another step forward.

Casey scoffed, although it sounded more like a hiccup since her throat was all closed up. "Well it's too late for that."

"We could try the long distance thing." He said desperately.

She shook her head. "It wont work." Her voice cracked, causing her to take a deep breath. "And you know it." She smiled at him, which was weird, since her eyes were still glossed over. "It's okay, Derek. Really. Now.." She wiped her eyes with her sleeve. "I better go check what Em is up to. She promised to bring me some ice cream." She made a movement to go past him, but he grabbed her arm.

"We're not done." He said softly.

Casey pried her arm out of his grasp. "I don't think you realize how completely embarrassing this is. So, I'm leaving. Because I'm done being the exposed, humiliated one."

"How are you humiliated?"

She scoffed again. "After what I inadvertently told you last night, I don't see how I could  _not_  be humiliated. Look, I get it. You are, Derek Venturi. You make girls fall in love with you, and you never fall yourself. You keep yourself detached. I envy you, actually."

Derek made a disbelieving noise. "Believe me, I'm not as detached as you think I am."

Casey looked at him in question. "What do you mean?" She tried to stifle the little hope that rose within her.

He gestured to the room around him. "I'm here aren't I? Isn't that enough?"

She shook her head. "It's not. I need someone who feels the same way that I do." She said softly.

Derek looked at her silently. His mind contemplating the pros and cons of what he was about to tell her. "And just because I don't say those words, it means that I don't feel the way you do?"

Her breath caught at that very thought. "Well.. do you?"

He began to panic. "I'm not.. " He gestured widely. "I'm not good with this sort of.. stuff."

Casey nodded sadly. "I know. But you didn't answer my question. Do you? Feel the same way about me?"

"What do you think? I'm about to leave, and all I could think about is how much I hate that you're not coming with me. Honestly, I don't know how I feel." He took a step towards her and grabbed her shoulders. "I don't want to leave." He said seriously, looking straight into her eyes.

"And what do you want me to do about it?" She asked him sadly.

Derek let out a frustrated noise. "I don't know. I just.." His hand snaked up her neck to cup her face gently. He moved closer.

"Derek.." Casey protested weakly. But she didn't stop him when he bent down. Or when he grabbed her lips with his. Instead she responded, pulling him closer, and reveling in the feeling of having his arms around her. He kissed her chin, her cheek, her neck, then pulled her tightly against him, as he buried his head in the crook of her neck. They stayed that way silently as her hands moved across his back, shoulders and hair in a soothing fashion. It was a way to say goodbye.

"I love you."

Casey's eyes widened. He didn't say what she think he said, did he? It was mumbled against her neck, but she couldn't be sure. "What?"

He chuckled. His voice sending a shiver through her body. Pulling back, he smiled at her. "You heard me."

This was too confusing for her. "Why would you tell me that when you're about to leave?" Part of her wanted to jump up and down, squealing, while another part of her wanted to slap him for telling her something so important now.

"Because, we get a three week break for Christmas, that I thought I could spend in Toronto." He said seriously.

His meaning couldn't be more clear. "So, then.. we're doing this?"

He nodded, pulling her closer. "We're doing this."

Casey grinned, her eyebrow rose in question. "You  _do_  realize that you wont be able to date anyone while you're in Edmonton, right?"

He let out a laugh. "Yeah, kinda got that."

"And you  _will_  have to call me every single day...?"

"Sure, when I'm not knocked out from practice."

"And, gifts are required for my birthday, Christmas, valentines  _and_  our anniversaries?"

"Um.. kinda hard if.. wait.. we have more than one anniversary?"

She grinned. "I'll fill you in on all five of them when we repack your stuff." She pulled him after her.

"Repack?" Dread was apparent in his voice.

She turned around to face him. "Did you even fold your clothes?"

He shrugged. "They were crushed anyway."

"Come on. You can never go wrong with my system." She said excitedly.

"Grrreeeeaaaat." Derek mumbled half-heartedly as he followed his once off, now back on girlfriend. Things were finally how he wanted them to be.

Note to self :  _Never_  listen to another guy about breaking up with Casey. Ever!


End file.
